Africa-Press – South-Africa. The Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) has found that a temporary physical science and mathematics teacher, who was employed in terms of a series of fixed-term contracts that were renewed annually for 10 years, had been dismissed fairly.
Nisha Binu was employed temporarily from January 2011. Her contract was renewed over the years and the last one was for the period 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2021.
The last position she occupied was that of a post-level 1 educator, she said.
At the time that her contract was terminated, her salary was R25 038 per month.
Binu lodged a grievance and asked the Limpopo education department to change her employment status to permanent.
She testified before the council that she had been a permanent residence of South Africa since July 2014 and added that she held a master’s degree in physical science and was registered with the South Africa Council for Educators.
According to the ELRC’s Masingita Sono, the school and governing body tried several times to have Binu appointed permanently. But the department “always rejected the recommendation”.
Sono submitted that the continuous renewals “might have created a reasonable expectation on the part of the employee that her contract would be renewed on an indefinite basis or on the same or similar terms as the fixed-term contract after 31 December 2021”.
“I, therefore, accept the employee’s submission that she expected her contract to be renewed on the basis that it was renewed several times since 1 January 2011,” Sono said.
However, Sono added that it was “unfortunate” that Binu relied on the school governing body and the principal for a permanent position.
Sono referenced Section 6B of the Employment of Educators Act, which provides that “the head of [the] department may, after consultation with the governing body of a public school, convert the temporary appointment of an educator appointed to a post on the educator establishment of the public school into a permanent appointment in the post without the recommendation of the governing body”.
The final contract Binu signed indicated that it was a promotion position.
However, Sono added, Binu should have interrogated the contract before signing it, saying:
“The circular from the head of [the] department that was addressed to all principals and all educators communicated the non-renewal of contracts of employment for temporary educators appointed in substantive and substitute (promotion) positions.
“The circular further provided the reason for the non-renewal as being that the department has advertised the promotion posts on 5 September 2021, and the post will be filled with effect from 1 January 2021. It is clear from the circular that the position that the employee occupied was no longer available. The circular was signed off by the head of [the] department on 8 November 2021, which was a reasonable notice under the circumstances.
“Despite that, the employee alleged that she only became aware of the circular via the principal during December 2021; it was never submitted when the principal received the notice.”
Sono found that the reason for the non-renewal of Binu’s fixed-term contract was fair under the circumstances.
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