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Moneyweb reports that according to the Public Servants Association (PSA), a decision has been made to relocate the Johannesburg Deeds Office to an alternative building within six weeks.
This after a meeting was held between the Director-General of the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development (DLRRD) and the Chief Registrar of Deeds, management and the PSA on Monday where it was agreed that the occupational health and safety (OHS) issues with the building “will persist as long as deeds employees remain in the current building”. “This move aims to ensure a safe working environment and restore normal service delivery,” the PSA’s Sibusiso Ndzala explained. The Marble Towers Building in central Johannesburg, which houses and has caused severe disruptions to the operations of the Joburg Deeds Office, was issued with a prohibition notice in December for alleged non-compliance with OHS regulations. The compliance deadline should have expired in mid-January 2025, but the building has remained open despite few, if any, of the compliance issues having been addressed. These OHS issues have resulted in many Deeds Office workers refusing to use the lifts to the 22nd, 25th, and 26th levels of the building because they fear for their safety. The OHS issues with the building involve malfunctioning and stuck elevators; construction activities occurring while employees are present, posing severe risks; poor ventilation owing to malfunctioning air-conditioning systems; and concerns that the ceiling tiles in the building contain asbestos. Ndzala further confirmed on Tuesday that service delivery remained disrupted due to the unresolved OHS issues, which posed a risk to employees’ health. Ndzala said there are more than 175 employees at the Joburg Deeds Office, of whom more than 100 were PSA members.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Roy Cokayne at Moneyweb
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