Senior management at the provincial education department is trying to create a post that does not appear on their organogram in a bid to appease an official who successfully challenged the appointment of a human resources director at the department.

The appointment of Ompile Motang last year caused a lot of grumbling, not only among those who had applied for the post and other staff members, but among the political leadership of the province.

Now a new post is being created for him after his irregular appointment was challenged.

Apparently, the incumbent did not have the qualifications or necessary experience related to human resources management or administration as required by the advertisement for the post.

The only excuse the department had for the appointment was that Motang had briefly acted in the post. However, many believe the offer had deliberately been made to act as caveat for him to finally get appointed when he did not have a clue of what the post required.

One of the applicants who felt short-changed, Kealeboga Moepedi, decided to challenge the appointment through the bargaining council and in a ruling delivered in May this year, he won the case. Moepedi has more than 10 years experience and a relevant tertiary qualification.

Part of the ruling reads: “It is submitted two factors illustrate the irrational choice of Motang instead of Moepedi by the interviewing panel. The first is that Moepedi has 17 years experience in human resources, nine of which are in middle management, whereas all the experience Motang had at the time of the interviews was a mere four months.

The second is that Motang had failed an assessment test whereas Moepedi had passed.”

The bargaining council further pointed out that the department had committed an unfair labour practice in appointing Motang at the expense of Moepedi. The department was then ordered to place Moepedi on salary level 13 starting from January 1 this year and give him all the benefits that go with the position.

Documents seen by The New Age show that some allowances amounting to more than R70000 have been paid to Moepedi and indications are that he could soon be paid the level 13 salary.

Departmental spokesperson Brian Setswambung said it was unlikely that Motang’s appointment would be reversed but a new post would be created for him (Motang).

“The official has been appointed but the department is still in talks and looking for a suitable alternative post for (Motang),” he said.

One department official who spoke on condition of anonymity said: “We are sick and tired of the labour practices at the department. Most of the people are hugely demotivated because unqualified and inexperienced officials are foisted upon them.

“We want the appointment of Motang reversed because it has created hell for officials in that directorate.”

The official added that if a qualifications audit was performed at the department, the public would be shocked at the flawed labour practices afflicting the department.
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