The Labour Court has upheld the reinstatement of Ster-Kinekor employee Yvonne Mogano, ruling that the cinema operator failed to prove that she breached a known workplace rule by tasting popcorn while preparing it.
In a judgment delivered on 23 October 2026, Acting Judge M.J. Motshekga dismissed Ster-Kinekor Theatres’ application to review and set aside a Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) award that found Mogano’s dismissal substantively unfair.
Mogano, who worked as a multi-skilled employee at Ster-Kinekor’s The Zone cinema in Rosebank, Johannesburg, was dismissed in July 2023 following allegations that she had eaten popcorn while preparing it.
The company charged her with misappropriation of company assets, dishonesty and failure to comply with company policy and standard practice.
Employee said she was checking salt levels
During arbitration at the CCMA, Ster-Kinekor’s complex manager, Tyran Naicker, testified that he had found Mogano eating popcorn in the kitchen.
Mogano disputed this, saying she had only tasted a few kernels to check the salt levels.
She testified that following a customer complaint in 2022 about excessively salty popcorn, Naicker had instructed her to taste it to ensure the salt levels were correct.
The CCMA commissioner accepted her version and found that the employer had failed to prove that she had breached a workplace rule or committed an act of dishonesty. Mogano was subsequently reinstated with retrospective effect.
Court finds no established rule prohibiting tasting
Ster-Kinekor approached the Labour Court, arguing that the commissioner had misconstrued the evidence and incorrectly concluded that Mogano had tasted rather than eaten the popcorn.
However, the court found that the company’s standard operating procedure contained no express prohibition against employees tasting popcorn.
The judgment noted that Naicker could not identify a specific provision prohibiting the practice. He also acknowledged that he had previously tasted popcorn and given some to Mogano to taste following the customer complaint.
The court emphasised that an employer relying on a workplace rule must prove both that the rule exists and that the employee knew about it.
The judge stated that conduct not expressly prohibited by a workplace procedure cannot simply be elevated into a disciplinary offence.
Ster-Kinekor’s review dismissed
The Labour Court also dismissed the company’s allegations that the CCMA commissioner had conducted the arbitration in a biased manner, finding no evidence supporting the claim.
Although the court granted condonation for the late filing of the review application, it ultimately dismissed the application.
The reinstatement of Mogano therefore remains in effect, with the court making no order as to costs.
