INLSA
Gugu Smamane at the Davenport KFC shop she resigned from after being disciplined for bringing non-halaal food on to the premises.
Workers at Kentucky Fried Chicken halaal branches in KwaZulu-Natal will finally be allowed to bring their own meals to work and will be provided with microwaves and fridge facilities.
This is a victory for the employees of Colefax Trading (Pty) Ltd after some workers were disciplined for bringing non-halaal food into halaal-certified KFC restaurants.
Colefax has 39 KFC food outlets around the province.
It had an agreement with its business partner, Yum Restaurants, that staff should not be allowed to bring their own meals to work.
The two companies voiced concern that halaal food sales could become contaminated.
However, Colefax has written to workers from the United Chemical Industries Mining Electrical State Health and Aligned Workers Union proposing a solution.
“The company will provide a microwave oven in a designated area to warm staff meals brought in. Staff will now be allowed to store their meals in a sealable container in the walk-in cooler,” Colefax said in a letter to the union.
The letter also said the company would provide designated facilities “to clean food containers and utensils brought in (by workers)”.
Colefax operations manager Prem Ramlall said the agreement would apply to all KFC food outlets in his company.
“Right now we are implementing what we have agreed upon.
“We are getting quotations from companies that supply equipment,” said Ramlall.
The changes come after several KFC employees submitted complaints to the union that they were being unfairly prevented from taking their own meals to work.
One of them, Jabulani Cele, was fired from a KFC branch in Empangeni after being found guilty of contravening the company policy.
The policy was condemned by the SA National Halaal Authority, which called for Colefax and Yum Restaurants to be tolerant of employees’ cultures.
Cele was reinstated and received backpay after taking his case to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.
He said that he had been forced to have his meals in a storeroom where cleaning chemicals were stored.
