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MISA goes to court to protect members against Motus Group actions

Jan 29, 2026 MISA, the Motor Industry Staff Association, Tiekie Mocke, Labour Court, Motus Group


MISA goes to court to protect members against Motus Group actions

MISA, the Motor Industry Staff Association, filed an application in the Labour Court in Johannesburg for a second interdict to protect Union members against draconian, authoritarian, unfair and unlawful ultimatums of the Motus Group.

 

According to the affidavit of Tiekie Mocke, Manager of MISA’s Legal Department, the unfair and unreasonable ultimatums of the Motus Group are causing MISA members extreme anxiety and mental anguish. 

 

The Union believes its members needs protection against the conduct of their employer, Motus Retail, a division of the Motus Group.

 

This is the second application for an interdict MISA, the majority trade union in the retail motor industry representing more than 75 000 members, has applied for at the Labour Court this week.

 

Earlier this week MISA brought an application for an interdict to prevent the Motus Group from unilaterally changing the terms and conditions of 273 MISA members affected by a Section 189 restructuring process in terms of the Labour Relations Act.

 

According to Mocke, the Motus Group retaliated against the Union’s interdict application when it informed its employees yesterday that it will henceforth consult with them directly and that they had until 20:00 (29 January) to furnish proposals to avoid retrenchment.

 

“Certain employees have until 13:00 on 30 January, whilst other employees have until 12:00 on 2 February to accept the “offer of alternative employment”, failing which they will be retrenched with no severance pay. 

 

MISA asks the Court to interdict Motus from retrenching these employees, to prevent further retaliation, and to ensure that the employer complies with the Section 189 processes set out in the Labour Relations Act. MISA also seeks to interdict Motus from consulting directly with MISA members.

 

If this application is heard after the MISA members have been retrenched, the court must order Motus to reinstate the MISA members on the same terms and conditions that they enjoyed prior to 13 January.

The Union applied for this application to be heard on 30 January at 10:00.

 

On 3 February at 10:00, MISA’s first application for an interim interdict, prohibiting Motus from implementing unilateral changes to the terms and conditions of employment of the affected MISA members, pending the Union’s dispute against Motus at the Motor Industry Bargaining Council’s (MIBCO) Dispute Resolution Centre (DRC), will be heard.

 

The Union’s unilateral changes to terms and conditions of employment dispute will be heard on 16 February.

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