Labour Court backs Santam in dismissal of employee who refused COVID-19 vaccine policy
The Labour Court in Cape Town has upheld the dismissal of a former Santam employee who refused to comply with the insurer's Covid-19 workplace policy, finding that her dismissal for gross insubordination and dishonesty was both procedurally and substantively fair.
Acting Judge R Abrahams dismissed an application brought by A Richards to review and set aside a Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) arbitration award that had found her dismissal to be fair.
Richards had been employed by Santam as a service consultant since May 2014. Following the Covid-19 pandemic, Santam introduced a workplace policy requiring office-based employees returning to the workplace from 1 March 2022 either to be vaccinated or, if they chose not to be vaccinated, to submit regular negative PCR Covid-19 test results at their own expense.
Court papers show that Richards elected not to receive the Covid-19 vaccine and instead complied with the alternative requirement by submitting regular negative PCR test results during March and April 2022. At the same time, she applied for an exemption from the vaccination policy, but her application was rejected.
