TPT assuages concerns over retirement demand

A recent letter sent
to its stakeholders by
Transnet Port Terminals
– demanding that all its
service providers adhere
to a retirement age of 63 –
raised a storm of protest in
the industry.
But TPT senior general
manager Zeph Ndlovu was
quick to assuage industry
concerns, assuring FTW
that the requirement would
be withdrawn.
The letter, which was
sent out last November
by the, at that time, TPT
acting terminal manager
in Port Elizabeth, David
Gwabeni, stated that
in terms of Transnet’s
termination of employment
policy employment was
automatically terminated
at the end of the month in
which the employee turned
63.
And then it went on to
make the demand that in
light of this, its stakeholders
were required to adhere to
the same ruling.
It then stated – in a
91-word sentence – that
service providers were
required to utterly and
completely indemnify
Transnet from any liability
whatsoever for costs,
claims and losses from that
provider complying with
that demand.
The industry voiced its
concern that such a demand
for service providers to
follow Transnet’s retirement
age was completely
unconstitutional, and might
spread to other cities.
Johannesburg-based Ron
Frick, MD of DAL Agency,
commented: “There surely
has to be a violation of some
human rights and/or our
constitutional rights in this
man penning this letter,”
he said.
Ndlovu said the letter
should never have been sent
out in the first place. And,
he told FTW: “It is about to
be withdrawn.”