Standard Bank of South Africa Ltd v SASBO, The Finance Union and Others

Ms Nontokozo Ngcobo was employed by Standard Bank as a Human Capital Consultant from July 2017. She was charged with breaching the Bank’s Housing Policy and with gross negligence after she signed a Personal Record Update (PRU) relating to a housing lease for an employee, Mr Taljaard. The Bank alleged that by signing the PRU she authorised a lease agreement that had been improperly signed and acted outside her mandate, and that she failed to make enquiries or obtain authorisation from senior managers. Ms Ngcobo was dismissed in August 2018. She referred an unfair dismissal dispute to the CCMA, where the commissioner found the Housing Policy ambiguous regarding her responsibilities, held that she had not acted dishonestly or with gross negligence, and ordered reinstatement with limited back pay. The Labour Court dismissed the Bank’s review application, confirmed reinstatement, and increased back pay. The Bank then appealed to the Labour Appeal Court.

The appeal by Standard Bank was dismissed. The order of the Labour Court confirming the CCMA award of reinstatement, with adjusted back pay, remained in force.

The case reaffirms that employers bear the onus of proving clear workplace rules and employee responsibility when alleging misconduct. It underscores that ambiguous policies cannot ground findings of gross negligence, and that dismissal requires proof of serious misconduct or an irretrievable breakdown of trust. The judgment also reinforces the deferential standard applied to CCMA arbitration awards on review and appeal.