Clicks nurse says she was ‘victimised for reporting sexual harassment'
As South Africans commemorate Women's Month, a nurse obtained a restraining order against her superiors for reportedly attacking her for reporting sexual misconduct.
Linda Motloung, a nurse from Tsakane Clicks Clinic in Brakpan, Ekurhuleni, said her relationship with the management got sour after she reported a sexual harassment case.
'What made me approach management was the offensive and sexual utterances that the store manager was always making against me,' said Motloung.
Relationship with management turned sour after reporting sexual harassment
'There was a time when I had a problem accessing the workplace entrance as the security system was failing to detect my finger and the store manager asked me if a finger was being used when I was about to have sex with my partner.'
She said she felt embarrassed and told the store manager she didn't like what he said.
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'But the manager continued to make sexual advances. As he was the one assisting me to get in and out of the workplace, I was obliged to interact with him.
'The other day, as he was walking me out of the premises, he said I should lubricate my finger with milk from my breast so that the system can detect it. At the time, he knew that I had a newborn baby. This happened in the presence of a female manger who just laughed it off.'
Motloung said she reported the matter to management in 2023 and there was a hearing. But the verdict was only released in April this year which cleared the store manager.
Unfairly treated in hearing
The management reportedly failed to inform Motloung about the results of the investigation.
She said she tried in vain to appeal the ruling because she believed she was unfairly treated in the hearing.
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'Since then, they started to gang up against me and when I entered the building, I felt like a stranger,' he said.
'The manager started to gang up with other people to sabotage my work and they started docking my salary without a valid reason, and fabricated stories to charge me over things I did not do. They also tried to influence patients to complain about me.'
Motloung said some of her colleagues were afraid to talk to her, as this would be viewed as siding with her.
Colleagues affaid to talk to her
She added the situation got out of hand last month and she had to obtain a restraining order against some of the managers.
She said she no longer felt safe because the store manager, who was on leave, would come to work just to 'discuss' her with other colleagues.
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'I came with the police to the store to hand over the restraining order because I was scared,' said Motloung.
'If the court saw it vital to protect me, it shows that Clicks should have protected me and made sure that I feel safe at work.'
She also accused the company of turning down her application to be transferred to another branch.
Transfer application rejected
She believed they refused because they wanted to frustrate her until she resigned.
The Citizen has seen a letter in which Clicks rejected her transfer application.
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A medical report from a psychologist, shared with The Citizen, says: 'The patient has been working at Clicks since 2023. She has suffered various traumatic incidents that have affected her mental and physical health.
'These have specifically happened at Clicks over the time she was employed there. She has been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and is on the Discovery mental health programme, which includes anxiety medication and psychotherapy, and she has now started experiencing panic attacks at work.'
Motloung has approached the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration to open a case of unfair discrimination and the matter will be heard next Wednesday.
Matter to be heard at CCMA
Clicks chief people officer Bridget Makhura said: 'Clicks Group takes all allegations of harassment extremely seriously and investigates them thoroughly.
'In this case, an impartial disciplinary chair found the employee concerned not guilty after a hearing. Clicks does not tolerate harassment, victimisation, or unauthorised pay deductions.
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'All concerns are escalated and addressed through robust internal processes. We cannot comment on individual employment cases, but all matters are handled with fairness, respect, and due process.'
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