Thabiso Putswe, who represents the Hotel, Liquor, Catering, Commercial and Allied Workers Union of South Africa (Hotelicca), and media personality Somizi Mhlongo are engaged in a heated dispute over unpaid wages.
At the centre of the dispute is R165 402.62 in unpaid salaries owed by Search Light, a cleaning services company accused of dismissing eight employees without compensation.
In June, Sunday World reported that Search Light allegedly failed to pay the workers after terminating their contracts.
The aggrieved employees escalated the matter to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation, and Arbitration (CCMA), which ruled in their favour and ordered the company to settle the outstanding salaries by July 31.
However, the company ignored the directive, forcing the workers to return to the CCMA, which then issued an order to attach the company’s assets.
During that period, several employees told Sunday World that Mhlongo was one of the directors.
Sunday World has seen a document listing Mhlongo as one of the directors along with his signature.
However, Mhlongo has vehemently denied any link to the firm.
Mhlongo distances himself from company
In a public statement, he said: “It has come to my attention that Sunday World has published an article titled ‘Somizi Mhlongo’s company vanishes as the sheriff comes knocking’.
“I would like to clearly state that the company referred to in the article does not belong to me, has never been registered under my name, and I have no association with it whatsoever. The claims made are completely false and misleading.”
Mhlongo went further to accuse this publication of spreading misinformation.
“It is deeply concerning that such misinformation is published without proper verification, as it has the potential to harm reputations and mislead the public.
“I urge media outlets to uphold the principles of accuracy and accountability when reporting.”
Putswe, though, is not having any of it. “I’ve seen Mhlongo’s statement, and my message to him is, ‘you can run, but you cannot hide.’
“I tried to respond on his Instagram and Facebook pages, but he locked the comments,” said Putswe.
Attempt to discredit workers
He insists that Mhlongo’s denial is an attempt to discredit him and the workers’ claims.
“We have documents showing he’s a director and proof that he attended company meetings. I even sent him a voice note challenging him, but he ignored me.
“Instead, he chose to issue a public statement. Clearly, he’s seeking public sympathy while hiding behind social media,” Putswe said.
Putswe added that the union is already considering further legal steps to recover the unpaid salaries.
“The sheriff has already been to their offices in Sandton, but they fled after hearing about the attachment.
“We are pursuing other legal channels to ensure Mhlongo and his associates pay the employees. For now, we won’t divulge much, except to say that justice will be served.”
Once again, Sunday World sent questions to Mhlongo, but he blocked the reporter. Messages sent to his email and social media accounts also went unansweOnce Mhlongo responds, we will include his comment in this story.onded.
