'Phuza' comes to shove

The nightmare that almost cost a Toyota employee his job started when the security guard at his workplace told him he had a "phuza face".

Maintenance worker Phindile Ziqubu, 56, is a teetotaller and non-smoker who had not had a blot on his disciplinary record for 15 years. But when Ziqubu arrived for work at the car manufacturer's Durban plant on February 17 2010, one of the employees picked him for a sobriety test - for the second day in a row.

But when Ziqubu asked why, the security guard said it was because he had a "phuza face" - a term associated with hangovers. A scuffle between the two men ensued and, as a result, Ziqubu was fired.

The Durban Labour Court ordered Toyota to reinstate Ziqubu with limited back pay.

Judge Robert Lagrange found that while Ziqubu had responded violently, his actions were not "of a very serious or injurious nature".

Ziqubu was found to have pushed the guard and two of his colleagues a few times.

Lagrange ordered that Ziqubu be issued with a final written warning, valid for six months, for each of his two acts of misconduct - acting violently and interfering with the guards' duties.

According to the order, Ziqubu must report back to work by Wednesday.

Toyota's lawyer, Richard Erasmus, said the company planned to appeal the judgment.