The legal battle between former Kaya FM managing director Sibongile Mtyali and the station has been aborted after the board agreed to revoke her dismissal from her plum job.
Sunday World can exclusively reveal that although the station has reversed her controversial dismissal, which hogged media headlines, Mtyali will not return to her cushy job as the station undertook to convert her dismissal to a “separation by mutual agreement”.
Mtyali will also smile from ear to ear to the bank as the Joburg station also undertook to pay her salary for 18 months instead of the initial three months it has already paid her.
The undertaking, which Mtyali has allegedly welcomed as a victory for her, was made by the board to her legal team when they appeared in the Johannesburg High Court on Wednesday.
Mtyali , who was pink-slipped last month, had filed an urgent court order to force the station and its board chairperson Sizwe Mncwango, who are cited as the first and respondents respectively, to reinstate her to her job, saying they unlawfully terminated her contract without legitimate reasons.
She also said prior to the termination of her contract, the two did not take her to a disciplinary hearing as stipulated in her contract of employment.
But after affidavits of arguments and counter arguments over whether her termination of employment was lawful, the two made the proposal at the advice of the judge, who was supposed to preside over the case.
A court official, who did not want to be named, said before the case could start, the judge asked the station’s legal team if they wanted to proceed with the case or talk to Mtyali’s legal team.
They then converged at the court chambers where, said the official, the board presented a new offer to Mtyali, who gleefully accepted it.
After accepting it, said the official, both parties hammered it down into a settle agreement, which was immediately made an order by the court.
The order, which we have seen, stipulates that the station will convert Mtyali’s dismissal to a mutually agreed separation.
“The applicant’s employment, which was terminated on 25 November 2022, shall be regarded as having terminated in terms of a mutual separation between the parties,” reads the agreement. The station, states the agreement, will also pay Mtyali her 15 months salary, which will be in addition to the three months they had already paid her.
“The applicant is not required to serve notice, and has been paid in lieu of her three months’ notice period.
“The settlement amount shall be less such amount as the first respondent may be required to deduct in accordance with an income tax directive to be obtained by the first respondent from the South African Revenue Services. The first respondent shall apply for an income tax directive referred to above by no later 12 January 2023,” reads the agreement.
Mtyali declined to comment.
“Once again, and with all due respect, I have no comment and if you need anything please speak to my lawyer,” she said before cutting us off.
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