City Press reports that the City of Ekurhuleni is under fire with outsourced workers, trade unions and municipal insiders accusing the municipality of failing to implement its long-promised insourcing programme.
This despite R8.2 billion having been allocated in the 2023/24 financial year to bring cleaners and security guards into permanent employment. According to insiders, many contractors have been brought in through irregular or emergency processes without documentation or verification. Internal schedules show the city relies on 5,881 contracted workers across 11 security and 25 cleaning companies. Contracted cleaners earn R5,500 per month with no benefits, while municipal general assistants doing identical work start at R18,000 with full benefits such as medical aid, UIF and pension contributions. Unions are demanding full insourcing, citing unfair hiring practices, political interference and long-term job insecurity for contractors.
Meantime, a strike by the Municipal Employees and Civil Society Union outside the Boksburg Civic Centre continues and has now surpassed 60 days. The union wrote to the city manager on 1 December, accusing HR officials of conducting unadvertised job interviews, using lists allegedly “submitted by councillors”, and bypassing formal recruitment processes. The SA Municipal Workers’ Union intensified the pressure during a march on 27 November. Regional secretary Tshephang Langa indicated: “Our members must enjoy full benefits, medical aid, UIF, everything. Council resolved on insourcing and no court has overturned that decision.”
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Vusuthando Percyvil Dube at City Press (subscription / trial registration required)
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