In a hanging judgment handed down on 28 March 2025, the Labour Court docket dominated that Pastor Lerato Makombe was constructively dismissed by her employer, the Cape Convention of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.
The choice confirms that even inside spiritual establishments, staff are protected by labour regulation – and {that a} failure to behave on office hostility and discrimination can quantity to illegal dismissal.
Years of Grievances and Transfers
Pastor Makombe, who started her employment with the Cape Convention in 2014, confronted a litany of challenges.
She was assigned to congregations recognized to be hostile to girls pastors and repeatedly transferred with out session.
In Queenstown and later in George, congregants overtly rejected her purely on the idea of her gender – stating it went in opposition to their spiritual convictions to just accept a girl within the pulpit.
Regardless of reporting these hostilities and even acquiring a court docket interdict in 2017, the church did not meaningfully intervene. As a substitute, she was moved from one district to a different – from Bethel to Queenstown, to an unfulfilled switch to Knysna, and ultimately to George, the place the harassment intensified.
Psychological Well being in Disaster within the church
The insupportable work circumstances severely impacted Pastor Makombe’s psychological well being. She was recognized with main depressive dysfunction and hospitalised a number of occasions.
Her medical reviews, which the court docket accepted as credible, immediately linked her deteriorating well being to office stressors.
Regardless of this, the church failed to supply sufficient help or any pastoral care, whilst she confronted harassment, exclusion, and emotional trauma.
A Sample of Neglect within the Church
Makombe’s issues spanned years. She repeatedly wrote to church management, lodged CCMA disputes, and even pursued authorized motion – all in a bid to remain in her function whereas defending her wellbeing.
One in every of her long-standing grievances was the failure to ordain her as an elder, a prerequisite to totally perform as a pastor. The church did nothing, regardless that male pastors with lesser tenure have been accommodated.
The Breaking Level
In 2020, whereas stationed in George, Pastor Makombe was humiliated on church WhatsApp teams, denied pastoral obligations, and excluded by church elders.
She once more reported her circumstances to the church however was met with silence. Her psychiatrist warned of an impending relapse. On 8 November 2020, she resigned.
Court docket’s Findings
The Labour Court docket was unsparing in its critique. It dominated that:
- The church’s failure to intervene constituted a unilateral breach of the employment relationship
- The hostility was inside the employer’s management.
- The cumulative impact of years of mistreatment and neglect rendered her continued employment objectively insupportable.
- Her resignation was not voluntary – it was a matter of survival.
Crucially, the court docket rejected the church’s declare that Makombe was the writer of her personal misfortune or that her gender was irrelevant to her remedy.
It famous that the church “accommodated congregants at Makombe’s expense” and “folded its arms” when motion was required.
Broader Implications
This ruling is especially important because it confirms that spiritual organisations should not above labour regulation.
Church buildings – like all employers – have a authorized responsibility to make sure secure and truthful workplaces.
The case additionally highlights how gender discrimination can manifest in refined but systemic methods, particularly when left unchecked.
A Victory for Many
Pastor Makombe’s case underscores the challenges girls – particularly in male-dominated sectors – face when asserting their proper to equal remedy.
Constructive dismissal is notoriously onerous to show, however this judgment affirms that justice is feasible when employers create or enable insupportable circumstances to persist.
HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED WORKPLACE DIFFICULTIES THAT WENT ON UNNOTICED?
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