Own Correspondent, Johannesburg | Thursday
IN a ruling which could have major repercussions on labour policies, the Constitutional Court has ordered that a man denied employment by South African Airways because he was HIV positive be offered the job as a cabin attendant with immediate effect.
Judge Sandile Ngcobo, who read extracts of the judgment, said that to deny Jacques Hoffman employment because of his HIV status was discriminatory and unconstitutional.
SAA denied Hoffman employment as a cabin assistant in 1996 because he was HIV positive. Hoffman then appealed against a Johannesburg High Court order that supported the airline’s stance.
The order by the High Court was set aside by the Constitutional Court.
Senior SAA officials – including senior media officer Madeleine Rosher – were locked in an urgent meeting with their legal advisers after the ruling.
The airline is making no statements until it has decided on its reaction to the ruling, which could have a major impact on the airline’s labour policies.
The ruling comes shortly after a report that Aids sufferers incapacitated by the disease will now be eligible to apply for a R540 monthly disability grant.
South Africa already has more than four million people who have Aids or are HIV-positive, making for a potential bill of more than R2 billion a month.