Standard Bank Employee Committed Suicide, South Africans Heartbroken

• A Standard Bank employee committed suicide in the bank's head office in Johannesburg
• The employee reportedly had mental health issues, which she confided in her colleagues about weeks ago
• South Africans slammed the bank, blaming them for the suicide, which happened before World Mental Health Day on 10 October

With nine years’ experience, Tebogo Mokwena, a current affairs writer for Briefly News, provided insights into the criminal justice system and high-profile cases in South Africa at Daily Sun.

JOHANNESBURG — A woman who worked for Standard Bank committed suicide at their head office after complaining about her mental health issues weeks before.

Employee takes her own life

The employee was reportedly unhappy and confided in her colleagues before she took her own life. She took her own life in the week leading up to World Mental Health Day, which was on 10 October 2024.

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Standard Bank is aware of incident

In a statement the Bank released about the incident, Standard Bank did not acknowledge that she took her own life but said that she fell out of the building. The bank said it remains committed to supporting those who were affected. The police are currently investigating the incident and have opened an inquest docket.

If you are feeling suicidal or are thinking about hurting yourself, do not hesitate to call the SA Suicide Crisis Line at 0800 567 567.

If you are concerned that someone you know might be in danger of hurting themselves, please alert your local authorities for immediate assistance. You can also encourage the person to contact a suicide prevention hotline using the information above.

Help is available on the Suicide Crisis Line 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and counsellors can conduct calls in all 11 official languages.

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South Africans discuss toxic workplaces

Facebook users commenting on the story talked about the impacts of a toxic workplace.

Shirley Burns said:

"It's all over, not just banks only."

Francis P Maphitha said:

"The so-called seniors are so abusive, and they don't care about their juniors."

Possenti Mkumbuzi said:

"Work environment is so toxic, employees will come drunk so they can get fired."

Sanda Dubois said:

"Companies put staff under a lot of stress and pressure, and this is not fair because many people are not strong."

Zolile Mthunjwa said:

"The workplace is brutal. They don't care about you. "

Christine Miles said:

"You see this happening daily in the workplace. Toxic working culture."

Learner commits suicide

In a related article, Briefly News reported that a learner from a high school in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, committed suicide.

The learner complained that his teacher regularly bullied him and took his life as a result.

Source: Briefly News