By Theodorah waga Mawasha
TZANEEN-Employees who customarily work with dangerous chemicals can suffer exposure if their protective gear is inadequate.
A former employee of Westfalia processing has made damning claims that she has damaged nails due to the chemicals used at the company.
Mmatlou Phokungwana(45) from Moleketla village, Greater Tzaneen, is adamant that her damaged nail bed is as a result of the chemicals she worked with at leading multinational avocado supplier and demands to be compensated.
“I worked for the company for 3 years from 2021. I never had this problem before. I started noticing a problem after a year. When I started complaining about it, I was issued a warning form and subsequently called to hearing for negligence at work. I was then dismissed in July 2022”, she said.
Phokungwana said that she has made several efforts to get compensation from her former employer but exhausted all options because the company won’t take accountability.
“I want them to account because there was no outline of the risks the chemicals pose in a vocabulary; we can all understand how to prevent or protect oneself. They requested that I submit medical records to prove that my nails got damaged because of the chemicals. I submitted the documents. They are now giving me the run around so that I can give up on the matter”.
Kea Mavundza who is a quality assurance manager at Westfalia told this publication that they know Phokungwana’s situation.
“I am aware of the issue however I will ask our communication team to revert”, Mavundza said.
