City Press reports that scores of government workers in Gauteng do not know whether or not to report for duty today – or where to report to.  

And it is unclear what will happen to the hundreds of employees housed at nine dangerous government buildings belonging to the Gauteng government.  According to a report commissioned by the department of infrastructure development last year, which was presented to the province last month, none of the nine buildings in the Johannesburg CBD achieved 50% compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act.  Gauteng provincial government spokesperson Thabo Masebe said heads of departments would reveal decisions on plans regarding whether or not to move the workers from non-compliant buildings at a meeting on Monday (the City Press report lists the nine non-complying buildings).  He said departments would decide, in accordance with what was detailed in the report, on what could be done to address issues raised.  Factors to be decided on included what could be fixed in the short term that would entail not moving workers or whether workers would be required to be moved to fix issues.  Details about the report surfaced after the Bank of Lisbon Building, situated at 37 Sauer Street in the Johannesburg CBD, housing the departments of health and human settlements, caught fire on Wednesday, claiming the lives of three firefighters.

• Read this report by Msindisi Fengu & Nompumelelo Magagula in full at News24
• Read too, Basic safety measures were absent at Bank of Lisbon Building, at The Star
• And also, Joburg firefighters died heroes, lament relatives, at SowetanLive

Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page