A LIMPOPO school is in contempt of court following its refusal to allow a teacher to return to work.

The teacher is now frustrated after he was not allowed to return to the school despite an order from the education department.

Lazarus Badimo was dismissed from Sehlaku Secondary School in Driekop, near Burgersfort, in 2009. This after he was accused of protecting pupils who had left the premises during school hours. The case was taken to the Human Rights Commission in Limpopo and Badimo won the case.

He was later accused of absconding from work, which was also proven to be untrue. But he was subsequently dismissed from work in October 2009, two months after his reinstatement in relation to the first case against him.

Badimo claimed at the time that there was an orchestrated campaign to remove him from the school. He then took the matter up with the Labour Court, which has since ruled in his favour and instructed that he be reinstated with effect from March 26 2012.

He was also supposed to be paid all his salary since his dismissal.

A copy of the Labour Court order Sowetan has seen reads: "The applicant should be reinstated with immediate effect in his position on the same terms and conditions which applied to him prior to the date of the deemed discharge in terms of Section 14(1) of the Employment of Educators Act of 1998."

Following the order by the Labour Court, the provincial department of education, through its head Morebudi Thamaga, wrote to the school authorities instructing them to reinstate him.

But the school's principal, Jacob Moshoana, and the SGB still do not want him back.

Moshoana said the matter "was in the hands of the department" while SGB chairwoman Anna Malatji said there were several other allegations against Badimo which prompted their decision not to allow him back at work.

Education department spokesman Pat Kgomo said: "We will do everything possible to ensure Badimo returns to work."