[ad_1]
Some of the former employees of Dippin Blu Racing in Fairview, Port Elizabeth, who stormed the stables in protest Thursday, killed a horse and injured more than 20. Photo: Mkhuseli Sizani
The owners of Dippin Blu Racing in Fairview, Port Elizabeth, are considering taking legal action against a group of their former workers who broke into the stables on Thursday, killing one horse and injuring more than 20.
First published by Ground.
“This is the worst day of my life. What they have done to my horses is barbaric … no human being should do that to animals. They stabbed and stoned my horses, ”said a distraught Hedley McGrath, owner of Dippin Blu.
“One horse is dead and 29 injured and traumatized. Later, the vet will determine the extent of the injuries. ”
The conflict appears to stem from an incident in February, when a worker apparently injured a horse. McGrath says the worker stabbed a horse in the neck. However, other workers dispute this, saying that he accidentally cut off a horse’s ear during grooming.
McGrath said, “All these [workers] he cared for expensive racehorses that wouldn’t even hurt a fly. They came to me on February 14th after the 7th incident. They said ‘please boss pay this guy to go away’.
“I said I don’t pay someone to stab my horse and no one can bribe me. He stabbed my horse in the neck and almost died. Then they decided to stay home and not come to work ”.
However, Mbeko Kolisile, a stable worker, said: “In February, one of our colleagues was busy cutting a horse’s hair. The horse jumped up and mistakenly cut off his ear. Our boss got angry and fired him, claiming that the vet would charge him R13,000.
“We asked the owner not to fire him but to deduct the money from all of us because that mistake could happen to anyone. But he fired us all. “
The workers then went to the Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration Commission (CCMA) in March, just before the national lockdown was implemented.
“During Level 4 of the confinement, we returned to the CCMA and they asked us to present a new complaint. Our boss told us we can go anywhere, but we will never win our case. So we decided to drop the case and ask for our FIU and service money because we were having financial difficulties, ”Kolisile said.
On Wednesday 16 September, the workers went to the Labor Department offices in Port Elizabeth to apply for the FIU, but were told they were not eligible because they had “run away” from work.
The next day, workers and other members of the community broke into the stables and began attacking the horses with stones, pangas, sticks, and buns. The police were called in and dispersed the group with rubber bullets and stun grenades.
According to police spokeswoman Priscilla Naidu, more than 150 protesters from the informal settlement of Fairview released about 28 horses from the stables early Thursday. She said witnesses reported seeing the horses “running in all directions with their abusers hitting them with sticks and stones.”
Naidu said the injured horses were treated by the Animal Anti-Cruelty League. “A case of intentional damage to property has been opened and is being investigated,” she said.
After the incident, McGrath said, “We don’t owe them [the workers] a penny and we follow all labor laws in this country. I have an order against them. Now I am busy with my legal team to see what the next step is.
“These horses are owned by prominent people who are now calling me to verify the safety of their horses.”
On threats from the workers that they would continue their protest and prevent races from taking place at Fairview Racecourse, McGrath said: “My company only trains the horses … we have nothing to do with the racetrack.”
One newspaper reported that racehorse trainers and owners had voted to go ahead with Friday’s race at Fairview. DM
