Court intervention protects Startek from R37.7 million execution amid dispute with dismissed employees.
The Labour Court in Durban has halted the execution of a R37.7 million judgment against outsourcing company Aegis Outsourcing South Africa (Pty) Ltd, trading as Startek, ruling that former employees who sought to enforce the payment acted unreasonably and in bad faith by pressing ahead with execution while the company was preparing a further appeal.
Acting Judge Sean Snyman granted an urgent application by Startek to suspend a writ of execution that had frozen the company's only operating bank account. The court also ordered the sheriff to lift the attachment and directed Standard Bank to remove the hold placed on the account.
The dispute stems from a lengthy labour battle dating back nearly a decade. The employees, led by Krishnaveni Govender and 20 others, were originally employed by Telkom before being transferred to WNS Global Services. They were dismissed by WNS in 2016 and subsequently challenged the fairness of their dismissals through various legal processes.
In February 2024, the Labour Appeal Court ruled in favour of the workers, finding their dismissals unfair and ordering their reinstatement, together with back pay. However, that order was made against WNS and not Startek.
