Casino employee hits jackpot as he wins back lost job
Two men walk into a casino bar and order a round of drinks. One is a VIP gambler. The other is an off-duty employee.
Which one of the two finds himself down on his luck thanks to that fateful afternoon?
In 2008 it was slots manager Gerald Matlotleng Dikobe who was fired over the incident‚ leaving him without his job for eight years.
But Dikobe’s luck recently turned when the Labour Appeal Court in Johannesburg reversed his dismissal‚ following a legal battle with his employer Sun City‚ owned by Sun International.
Sun City must now reinstate their slots manager of 17 years with back-pay from the date of his dismissal‚ August 18 2008‚ the court said.
In July 2008‚ Dikobe and his VIP gambling friend walked into the Rhino bar at the Sun City Resort in Rustenburg. Dikobe is seen on surveillance footage purchasing drinks with vouchers‚ not money.
The casino issues these vouchers to its VIP guests as an incentive.
Dikobe was accused of having unauthorised possession of the vouchers and using it to buy drinks – apparently an infringement of a workplace rule.
He argued that he had permission from his VIP friend to handle the vouchers‚ which the friend confirmed‚ and approached the Commission for Conciliation‚ Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) and the Labour Court to challenge his dismissal‚ but lost.
The Labour Appeal Court this month‚ however‚ found that his dismissal was not substantively fair‚ saying the rule used to sack Dikobe was vague.
Judge Roland Sutherland said it was not clear what a VIP is allowed to do with these vouchers.
“Is it not a logical inference to draw that a VIP may not “use” the vouchers for that VIP’s guest‚ stereotypically‚ his non-gambling girlfriend in attendance to marvel at his skills in the art of gambling.”
Sutherland said Sun City failed to show why Dikobe was wrong to accept a drink from a VIP as an off-duty employee when he upheld his appeal.
Sun City had not yet responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.
