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The Motor Industry Staff Association (Misa), the biggest union in the retail motor industry with more than 75,000 members, has criticised South Africa’s biggest vehicle dealership for justifying a retrenchment process while it acknowledged a strong benefit from the strongest vehicle sales environment in a decade. The JSE-listed Motus Group announced it would cut jobs on October 9 last year after reporting a 1% decline in revenue to R112.6bn for the year to end-June. It attributed its drop to lower contributions from new-vehicle sales of R3.33bn (6%), primarily in the group’s international operations. Misa said the retrenchment process has caused significant hardship to 67 former employees and their families, while more than 200 employees would be affected by “unilateral changes in the salary benefit structure … in July”, said Misa communications manager Sonja Carstens. She took aim at Motus CEO Ockert Janse van Rensburg after he forecast stronger earnings for the financial year ending in June, citing improved operational performance and favourable market conditions. Motus expects South Africa’s new-vehicle sales to reach 610,000-640,000 units in 2026. “Misa maintains that the retrenchments implemented by Motus in January were neither justified nor a measure of last resort, as required by the spirit and intent of section 189 of the Labour Relations Act (LRA). Prior to the retrenchments, the union highlighted that new-vehicle sales in South Africa had reached pre-Covid record levels since September 2025,” Carstens said. “According to Naamsa, the market recorded its strongest monthly performance since 2013, with May 2026 sales rising 12.8% year on year to 51,071 units. This surge reflects renewed confidence in the automotive sector, driven by a 16.3% increase in passenger car sales and steady growth across commercial vehicles.” Misa CEO for operations Martlé Keyter said: “Throughout the section 189 consultation process, Misa proposed alternatives to the dismissal of employees because of the local market’s positive performance. Misa and Motus could not reach an agreement because the employer consulted in bad faith and was determined to cut its so-called bloated wage bill.” Keyter accused Motus of abusing section 189 by “refusing to explore reasonable alternatives to avoid retrenchments. Misa remains convinced that the job losses at Motus could have been avoided through meaningful consultation, genuine engagement and the implementation of proposed alternatives.” It is “troubling” that Motus will pursue retrenchments while simultaneously reporting “stronger trading conditions and improved performance”. Keyter said Van Rensburg had confirmed that Motus would continue to implement its unilateral changes in the salary benefit structure of affected employees in July. “The parties have been engaged in labour court proceedings for months. In February, the labour court interdicted Motus from unilaterally changing the terms and conditions of employment of 232 members of Misa but dismissed another application by the union to interdict Motus from consulting directly with its members during a retrenchment process and from pursuing the consultation process before issuing a fresh notice in terms of section 189 of the LRA,” she said. “Misa confirms that various matters arising from the retrenchment process remain the subject of ongoing litigation in the labour court. Misa will continue to defend every affected member. “Workers are not disposable assets that can be sacrificed whenever a company seeks greater efficiencies or increased profits. These are the people who built these businesses and contributed to their success,” Keyter said. Motus said the narrative presented does not “accurately reflect the context of the comments made, nor the approach followed in relation to the section 189 process within its SA Retail division”.“It is important to distinguish between the performance of Motus Holdings Limited, as a diversified international group employing over 20,000 people, and SA Vehicle Retail, which operates as a distinct business unit with its own operational realities and market dynamics,” Motus said.“The restructuring process within SA Vehicle Retail commenced in July 2025 in response to changing consumer demand patterns and market conditions affecting certain legacy brands,” it said.“The retrenchment of 67 employees followed an extensive CCMA [Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration] facilitated section 189 consultation process conducted in accordance with the Labour Relations Act.“Every effort was made by Motus to minimise the impact on our employees, including exploring redeployment and package realignment.”
