A Cape Town Labour Court ruling has ordered Mpact Operations to reinstate an employee who was dismissed in a toilet paper theft dispute and to pay him R120,000 in back pay.

The case centers around Theodore April, a winder operator who worked at Mpact from 2009. He was dismissed after security searched his bag at the end of a shift and found a roll of toilet paper. April denied that it belonged to the company and said he had brought it from home.

What Happened at the Workplace

Mpact told the arbitration that it had received a tip-off that April was stealing company toilet paper. Security was instructed to search him and the roll was found in his bag.

The company also argued that staff must declare items brought from home if they are the same as, or similar to, items on the premises. Mpact maintained the roll was the same brand the company used and claimed its toilet paper was “unique” and not sold in retail stores.

Why the Dismissal Did not Hold Up

An arbitrator found it was not proved that the roll was stolen and ruled the dismissal unfair. The Labour Court later rejected Mpact’s application to review that arbitration outcome.

Acting Judge M Mkhatshwa criticized how the matter was handled from the start. The court noted that a photo was taken of the roll April brought to the disciplinary hearing, but no pictures were taken of the roll allegedly found in his bag at the gate. The judge said a side-by-side comparison would have strongly supported, or undermined, the employer’s case.

The court also questioned why security allowed April to put the roll back in his bag and leave with it after it was found. The judgment held this undermined the claim that he was stealing.

What the Court Ordered

The court ordered Mpact to reinstate April and pay R120,000 back pay. The judgement said the back pay must be paid by the end of February and that April must report for duty on 2 February.