ANN7 staff, who spoke to Sowetan on condition of anonymity, said Manyi had called a staff meeting on Monday night and instructed them to write statements distancing themselves from the other station or resign.
"Manyi is basically forcing us to either write statements to say we don't want to be associated with Vila Kasi or resign with immediate effect. My problem is that if I resign, I am going to be at home for three months with no income," said one employee.
She said some of her colleagues had opted to resign during the urgent meeting, while others gave Manyi an option to fire them.
Another staff member said: "We have three months before we officially start working at Vila Kasi. So what must we do with the remaining months with no pay?
"We are allowed to look for other jobs as professionals. If he finds something wrong with us finding new jobs then he should fire us."
ANN7 staff show boss Manyi middle finger
Some employees at Africa News Network 7 (ANN7) have refused to resign following their affiliation with a rival television station.
They said they wanted ANN7 boss Mzwanele Manyi to fire them instead.
This comes after upcoming TV news station Vila Kasi released a statement with the names of their workers, the majority of whom were poached from ANN7.
The channel, which would be based in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, posted on its social media pages the names and job positions of staff members due to go on air in August.
ANN7 staff, who spoke to Sowetan on condition of anonymity, said Manyi had called a staff meeting on Monday night and instructed them to write statements distancing themselves from the other station or resign.
"Manyi is basically forcing us to either write statements to say we don't want to be associated with Vila Kasi or resign with immediate effect. My problem is that if I resign, I am going to be at home for three months with no income," said one employee.
She said some of her colleagues had opted to resign during the urgent meeting, while others gave Manyi an option to fire them.
Another staff member said: "We have three months before we officially start working at Vila Kasi. So what must we do with the remaining months with no pay?
"We are allowed to look for other jobs as professionals. If he finds something wrong with us finding new jobs then he should fire us."
Vila Kasi spokesman Nicolas Manyike said the employees were officially part of his company.
"When we sent appointment letters they had to either decline or accept. If you accept it means you are already part of us," Manyike said.
Manyi said he felt insulted by Vila Kasi and his staff who did not clarify their intentions to leave his station on time.