BTC, union agree to end retrenchment squabble
The legal dispute between the Botswana Telecommunications Corporations (BTC) and Botswana Telecommunications Employees Union (BOTEU) over impending layoffs at the corporation has been resolved.
This comes after the labour union representing the employees and the corporation consented to end their squabbling and go back to the negotiation table over the terms of the planned retrenchment.
The two parties have been at loggerheads and were headed for a legal showdown after the BTC management resolved to embark on a retrenchment and structuring exercise without the involvement of the union with regards to the new structure and retrenchment packages for the retrenched employees.
It is said that the company’s management had also refused to share the documents containing the new structure with the employees’ representatives citing confidentiality. However, the management decided to directly present the aforementioned new structure to employees, before going ahead with issuing letters indicating to the employees whether they are placed in the new structure or their positions were redundant. The union, through lawyers, Paul & Partners, argued that the entire process and mapping employees were done in secrecy without any input from the union.
Through an urgent application, which was filed with the Gaborone Industrial Court, the union wanted the corporation to be interdicted from proceeding with the retrenchment exercise until workers were properly consulted.
It also wanted the court to declare that the conduct of the corporation in proceeding to exit the employees before the consultation process is concluded is unlawful and amounts to illegality.
“If the respondent is not interdicted, the applicant would lose the right to be consulted and will have no recourse against the respondent,” the union had argued in their court documents.
It also said the placement and mapping of employees varies without any apparent reason while some employees with qualifications are also exited. The union further disputed the criteria, which they said is done in secrecy.
According to court papers, BTC had planned to complete the retrenchment exercise by September 30, 2022. The union argued that the “flagrantly unlawful and willful conduct of the respondents” demanded immediate redress.
The matter was scheduled for hearing September, 26, 2022 but the parties agreed to settle it without going through the rigorous case trial.
According to the agreement entered into by the two parties, they are to meet and consult on the respondent’s structure and retrenchment package on September 28. The parties also agreed to have another consultation meeting on October 4.
“The effect of the letters of redundancy issued by the respondent shall be suspended pending the outcome of the aforementioned consultation meetings,” reads the consent order in part.
The agreement was made an order by Justice Diratsagae Molomo of the Industrial court on Monday. According to sources close to the developments at BTC, employees are also shocked by the company’s move to embark on a retrenchment exercise as its financial books have been healthy for some time. “We didn’t expect this because BTC has not reported any loses in recent years. In fact, the corporation has been making profit but now they want to cut people and pay them what they want,” said the source.