DELMAS – On Wednesday over 70 workers at Daybreak Foods embarked on a protest against the company after it has failed to pay full wages for its workers for two consecutive months.
The strike– which took place on 02 July 2025– brought traffic to a standstill on the R50 road near the company premises. The workers said the company only paid 50% of their May wages with June’s paycheck remaining unpaid.
“We have to fight every month just to get what’s rightfully ours,” the workers’ spokesperson Nomathemba Lebeko told the Highveld Chronicle. “Some workers have been evicted from their homes because they can’t pay rent and we have kids to support. It’s incredibly hard.”
Lebeko further expressed concerns regarding the company’s alleged avoidance of formal retrenchments, which they believe is a tactic to block access to retirement and Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) benefits.
“They are forcing us to resign, which means we won’t receive any UIF benefits. The 50% payment we received doesn’t even cover our debit,” she said, adding that many women on maternity leave have not received the necessary documentation to apply for maternity benefits.
In a statement issued the same day of the protest, Daybreak Foods’ senior business rescue practitioner (BRP) Tebogo Maoto acknowledged the ongoing labour disputes and the challenges it faces following its placement into business rescue on 12 June 2025.
Maoto said an emergency funding has been approved for salary payments but failed to provide a specific date of when these payments will be made due to “uncertainties regarding the release of funds”.
“Employees who worked in June will receive their full salaries, while those who did not will get a minimum of 50%,” Maoto said in the statement. However, the company is also grappling with the non-payment of pension and provident fund contributions.
As part of its efforts to reduce labour costs, the BRP is contemplating temporary layoffs, with plans to provide a monthly living allowance for non-seconded employees and potential assistance from UIF Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (TERS).
The selection process for secondment will be based on the principle of Last In, First Out (LIFO), which prioritises workers who have been with the company the longest while taking into account required skills.
In addition to financial woes, Daybreak Foods is facing operational challenges linked to its IT service provider, Altron, which has suspended its services after Daybreak failed to pay the service provider. The suspended services are crucial for payroll and HR operations.
“We are committed to keeping affected parties informed of developments as we navigate this challenging period,” Maoto said.
Daybreak Foods’ troubles escalated following the appointment of Richard Manzini as CEO in January 2024, with a mandate to lead a turnaround at the struggling company. However, he resigned just three months later, in April 2024, amid growing concerns over financial instability and internal governance issues. After a series of short-lived leadership changes, the company continued to deteriorate, leading to its placement under formal business rescue on 12 June 2025.
