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The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health continues to hire non-critical staff
despite the moratorium imposed in August 2008 on the appointment of
employees other than doctors and nurses in order to contain the
multi-billion rand over-expenditure.

"The department has found a creative way of bypassing the moratorium by
recruiting non-critical staff through employment agencies," said Roman
Liptak IFP MPL who serves on the health portfolio committee in the
KwaZulu-Natal Legislature.

In total, 112 employees have been recruited with the help of employment
agencies since the inception of the freeze on the filling of non-critical
vacancies in August last year. "Most of these post-moratorium recruits are
secretaries, personal assistants, data capturers and general assistants. The
picture is complete with a messenger and a librarian," said Liptak

While some of these jobs have been filled on a month-to-month basis, others
are on a fixed-term contract. "A significant proportion of the
post-moratorium recruits serve at the department's head office," said Liptak

It appears that the Department of Health has been employing staff through
employment agencies since at least 2003, creating two categories of
employees: permanent staff who enjoy the benefits available to government
employees and temporary staff contracted to employment agencies.

This week, the Department of Health in tandem with the provincial Treasury
unveiled a comprehensive recovery plan to contain the runaway expenditure.
"With the exception of those in charge of its implementation, this recovery
plan is a carbon copy of the turnaround strategy introduced by the joint
task team comprising the department and Treasury in November 2008," said
Liptak.

The 2008 turnaround strategy foundered on the lack of communication between
the Department of Health and the Treasury, resulting in ever higher levels
of over-expenditure. Now, as then, compensation of employees is one of the
main cost drivers in the department.