Curro Academy Protea Glen in Soweto has fired the black English and history teacher who was labelled a monkey by the axed white executive head last year.
Nonkululeko Gwatyu, who was called a monkey by the academy’s former executive head, Shanette Tiquin, was allegedly dismissed for coming late to school and taking French leave.
This was after she was hauled before a disciplinary hearing and found guilty of misconduct.
According to the charge sheet, which we have seen, Gwatyu was charged a few months after she complained that Tiquin had racially attacked her.
The charge sheet reads in parts: “Due to your conduct described below, you committed gross misconduct, alternatively, misconduct in that you failed to adhere to your contractual working hours commencing at 07:00 a.m. and ending at 15:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday.
“It is alleged that you arrived late for work. It is alleged that you were absent without authorisation.”
In the email she sent to Curro Holdings executive for corporate services and the group company secretary, Mari Lategan in November last year, Gwatyu challenged the decision to charge her with misconduct.
She said she was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and severe depression, which her medical doctor declared to be a direct response to the racism case.
Gwatyu also stated that she had communicated the outcome of her consultations with psychologists and other doctors to the school’s executive head, Johannes Mahlatsi.
“In his leadership capacity, Mr Mahlatsi advised that I should always prioritise my health and utilise any help at my disposal.”
She said the school’s principal, Ofentse Konopi, also offered her an opportunity to deal with her PTSD.
She also stated that Konopi had initiated getting her assistance while her teaching role was filled by one of the teachers at the school. “I took advantage of the offer of Mr Konopi, which I had initially suspected to be a plot against me.
“The help did not materialise because of differences in the English department, which I brought to Mr Mahlatsi’s attention.
“I ended up requesting alternative help, which is a student teacher and a dongle to carry out other administrative tasks at home. That was not provided until very late, when marks were due, and I had to manage with no assistance from the school,” said Gwatyu.
Gwatyu also stated that to rub salt to the wound, Mahlatsi hand delivered the charge sheet to her house when she was on her sick bed and forced her to sign the documents despite her condition.
After the hearing, Gwatyu was dismissed on Wednesday last week, when she was celebrating her birthday. In the letter of dismissal that we have seen, Curro stated that she was expelled from the school based on the outcome report concluded by the disciplinary chairperson, Advocate Ntombi Mncube.
Gwatyu told Sunday World it was clear that she was targeted for standing up against Tiquin. Gwatyu said there were morning meetings at the school, which she would attend with other educators, and that they normally attended meetings first without tagging their cards. They would do so later, after the meetings.
“I was not the only person who would not tag. I was singled out despite others who also tagged after the meeting, merely because I was seen as a problem when I stood up against racism, when I spoke out against Tiquin calling me a monkey.
Since the scandal of Tiquin surfaced last year, I became a target of all sorts of things at the school, and I became a persona non-grata as I was hated for standing up for myself against the racist Tiquin,” she said.
Gwatyu said she will be heading to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration to challenge her dismissal.
Curro Holdings business executive Fergus Sampson said: “We confirm that a disciplinary hearing was concluded into the conduct and performance of an educator at Curro Academy Protea Glen.
The hearing was independently chaired by Advocate Ntombi Mncube of the Johannesburg Bar.
The employee was charged with gross misconduct including multiple failures to adhere to working hours, multiple unauthorised absences, and negligence in submitting work over several consecutive months – despite the support provided to the educator to improve her performance. Advocate Mncube found the employee guilty and recommended a sanction of summary dismissal. Curro has implemented the recommendation of the chair.”
