The Free State Department of Education has been ordered to pay a school principal more than R722,000 after he served in an acting capacity for nearly three years without proper remuneration.
Molangoana Zacharia Pholosi assumed the role of acting principal at Ipekiseng Secondary School from June 2021 until 31 March 2024, when he was formally appointed to the position. Despite this extended period, he was compensated for only three months of his acting tenure.
Although a settlement agreement was drafted, it was signed solely by Pholosi, resulting in a payment dispute with the department. Seeking recourse, he approached the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC).
During the proceedings, the department acknowledged its liability for the unpaid acting allowance. It stated that submissions for payment approval had been sent to the Head of Department (HOD), who then returned them to the district office.
Arbitrator Monde Boyce, presiding over the matter, attributed the delay to administrative failures. He ruled that the department’s procrastination unfairly burdened the applicant.
“The department failed to provide a coherent explanation for the delay, and even if such challenges existed, it remains unreasonable that it took more than three years to process payment,” Boyce stated.
He further expressed dismay that an issue easily resolved internally required ELRC intervention. “The respondent’s failure to pay the applicant the acting allowance constitutes unfair labour practice, and the applicant is thus entitled to the relief he seeks.”
The department has been directed to pay Pholosi the outstanding amount by 30 May 2025.
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