Death at the workplace
Five killed at work since 2019
The worrying trend of workplace killings has sent chills down the collective spine of the Namibian workforce.
Five people have been shot dead at work in the last five years in Namibia, a terrifying trend that has unsettled the country’s workforce.
Four of the victims were fatally shot by their subordinates, while one was shot by his boss.
The latest victim is John Myburgh (43), who was shot and killed at his workplace at Ondangwa last Friday, allegedly by his subordinate at Henning Crusher, Tuutileni Mika. Myburgh’s fellow manager Johan Richter (44) was also shot and was admitted to the Ondangwa Private Hospital in critical condition.
It is alleged that Mika wanted to shoot a third employee at the company, but ran out of bullets.
At the City Centre building in Windhoek, Sarah Mwilima was shot and killed by a colleague, Simataa Simasiku, while on duty at the Global Fund offices on 28 January 2019. Simasiku was found unfit to stand trial and diagnosed with schizophrenia after an evaluation.
Four months later, in April 2019, Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) executive director Eckhart Mueller (72) and his deputy, Heimo Hellwig (60), were gunned down at the organisation’s head office at Arandis by their junior employee Ernst Lichtenstrasser. He was sentenced to 66 years in prison in April this year.
Also in April 2019, Hausiku Andreas Muyeu was shot and killed at Andara Enterprise Supermarket at Andara village, allegedly by his boss Xuefeng Chen (30) and his associate Zhenhai Zhou (32).
Workplace a ‘battlefield’
Job Muniaro, the secretary-general of the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW), condemned last week’s killing at Henning Crusher and attributed some of the workplace violence to ‘frustrated’ employees who have made the workplace a battlefield.
He said under no circumstances should one carry a gun to work. “We are not living in the world of war. If someone goes to work with a gun, it already shows you that there is no capacity for leadership at that company,” he said.
In the Ondangwa matter, it is alleged that Mika left the work premises briefly to go fetch the gun from home. “It seemed that everyone in that workplace knew that Mika, who had a running grievance with his supervisors, was the co-worker most likely to turn violent. I am sure he has either made threats before or he was seen carrying a gun. Yet no one took steps to intervene,” Muniaro remarked.
He warned that employers should take precautions and consider wellness programmes.
“Employers are focused on making money and becoming rich instead of looking at the wellness of employees as well. We are going to take up this issue with the ministry of labour to strengthen the law in terms of safety at the workplace. I could say close the business until they have their house in order,” he said.
Policies ignored
Mahongora Kavihuha, the secretary-general of the Trade Union Congress of Namibia (TUCNA), said bullying, discrimination, favouritism and harassment - whether sexual or verbal - are all issues which can promote or encourage violence at work.
He said although companies have policies guiding them on how they should handle grievances at work, many employers in Namibia do not pay attention to them - despite the country having ratified the International Labour Organisation’s convention 190 concerning the elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work in February 2020.
Instead, they look at the person’s position in the company and downplay the issue or turn a blind eye, he said.
As a result, most of these employees with unresolved issues become depressed and sometimes stay away from work for extended periods without an explanation, Kavihuha noted. “At some point, they decide ‘I am already dead inside, let me kill them, I have nothing to lose’.”
He described the trend of workplace killings as worrying.
While most of these fatalities have happened in private companies, Kavihuha said similar anger is brewing in the public sector. “There’s a war at government schools. And these issues have been reported and not attended to. I am urging employers to respond to grievances [in a] timely [manner] and fairly. No selective punishment and victimisation of those who speak up.”
According to Kavihuha, employers need to pull up their socks to avoid incidents of this nature, adding that, as a union, they will talk to secretary to Cabinet, George Simataa, about executive directors who are failing in their duties to deal with reported labour issues.
Be proactive
Labour expert Herbert Jauch said although they do not have detailed statistics about violence at work, the examples cited are worrying.
He noted that most incidents reported at work seem to be cases of sexual harassment and victimisation.
Employers have a legal obligation to protect employees from any kind of violence and harassment, he stressed. “Employers should be proactive to make sure that such incidents do not occur. Practically, education sessions and fast and effective grievance procedures are tools which can be used at workplaces. In cases of abuse, swift disciplinary action has to be taken,” Jauch urged.
Four of the victims were fatally shot by their subordinates, while one was shot by his boss.
The latest victim is John Myburgh (43), who was shot and killed at his workplace at Ondangwa last Friday, allegedly by his subordinate at Henning Crusher, Tuutileni Mika. Myburgh’s fellow manager Johan Richter (44) was also shot and was admitted to the Ondangwa Private Hospital in critical condition.
It is alleged that Mika wanted to shoot a third employee at the company, but ran out of bullets.
At the City Centre building in Windhoek, Sarah Mwilima was shot and killed by a colleague, Simataa Simasiku, while on duty at the Global Fund offices on 28 January 2019. Simasiku was found unfit to stand trial and diagnosed with schizophrenia after an evaluation.
Four months later, in April 2019, Namibian Institute of Mining and Technology (NIMT) executive director Eckhart Mueller (72) and his deputy, Heimo Hellwig (60), were gunned down at the organisation’s head office at Arandis by their junior employee Ernst Lichtenstrasser. He was sentenced to 66 years in prison in April this year.
Also in April 2019, Hausiku Andreas Muyeu was shot and killed at Andara Enterprise Supermarket at Andara village, allegedly by his boss Xuefeng Chen (30) and his associate Zhenhai Zhou (32).
Workplace a ‘battlefield’
Job Muniaro, the secretary-general of the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW), condemned last week’s killing at Henning Crusher and attributed some of the workplace violence to ‘frustrated’ employees who have made the workplace a battlefield.
He said under no circumstances should one carry a gun to work. “We are not living in the world of war. If someone goes to work with a gun, it already shows you that there is no capacity for leadership at that company,” he said.
In the Ondangwa matter, it is alleged that Mika left the work premises briefly to go fetch the gun from home. “It seemed that everyone in that workplace knew that Mika, who had a running grievance with his supervisors, was the co-worker most likely to turn violent. I am sure he has either made threats before or he was seen carrying a gun. Yet no one took steps to intervene,” Muniaro remarked.
He warned that employers should take precautions and consider wellness programmes.
“Employers are focused on making money and becoming rich instead of looking at the wellness of employees as well. We are going to take up this issue with the ministry of labour to strengthen the law in terms of safety at the workplace. I could say close the business until they have their house in order,” he said.
Policies ignored
Mahongora Kavihuha, the secretary-general of the Trade Union Congress of Namibia (TUCNA), said bullying, discrimination, favouritism and harassment - whether sexual or verbal - are all issues which can promote or encourage violence at work.
He said although companies have policies guiding them on how they should handle grievances at work, many employers in Namibia do not pay attention to them - despite the country having ratified the International Labour Organisation’s convention 190 concerning the elimination of violence and harassment in the world of work in February 2020.
Instead, they look at the person’s position in the company and downplay the issue or turn a blind eye, he said.
As a result, most of these employees with unresolved issues become depressed and sometimes stay away from work for extended periods without an explanation, Kavihuha noted. “At some point, they decide ‘I am already dead inside, let me kill them, I have nothing to lose’.”
He described the trend of workplace killings as worrying.
While most of these fatalities have happened in private companies, Kavihuha said similar anger is brewing in the public sector. “There’s a war at government schools. And these issues have been reported and not attended to. I am urging employers to respond to grievances [in a] timely [manner] and fairly. No selective punishment and victimisation of those who speak up.”
According to Kavihuha, employers need to pull up their socks to avoid incidents of this nature, adding that, as a union, they will talk to secretary to Cabinet, George Simataa, about executive directors who are failing in their duties to deal with reported labour issues.
Be proactive
Labour expert Herbert Jauch said although they do not have detailed statistics about violence at work, the examples cited are worrying.
He noted that most incidents reported at work seem to be cases of sexual harassment and victimisation.
Employers have a legal obligation to protect employees from any kind of violence and harassment, he stressed. “Employers should be proactive to make sure that such incidents do not occur. Practically, education sessions and fast and effective grievance procedures are tools which can be used at workplaces. In cases of abuse, swift disciplinary action has to be taken,” Jauch urged.
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