The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union [NEHAWU] in Gauteng has received with shock the statement released by the Minister of Employment and Labour yesterday.

While trying to defend his incompetence and arrogance the Minister continued to make unfounded statements that are not based on facts. The silly defence by the Minister narrowly focuses on the complaint we made about the Clinix Hospital group. However, in relation to the assertion by the Minister that inspectors intervened at Clinix we wish to categorically indicate that on the 08th of May 2020 we sent a communique to the inspectors office listing all the institutions which were non-compliant and amongst them we indicated that all Clinix Hospitals in the province needed interventions from the inspectors and other institutions as listed but we never received any response till to date.

In July we further wrote to the head office legal division a letter to the Chief Inspector raising the issues but still we received no response and we then wrote a letter to the head of inspectors in Gauteng who also did not respond to the request of interventions. We, therefore, rebut the statement of the Minister on the basis that we did not receive any report on any interventions by the department at Clinix and any other institution that we reported about.

We find it abhorrent that the Minister elected to only single out one institution in Gauteng in a form of Clinix group, whilst we reported a number of workplaces without any response from the department in Gauteng.

The province lodge complaints about the following workplaces for urgent intervention:

·      Chris Hani Bara Academic Hospital

·      Charlotte Maxeke Academic Hospital as well as NHLS

·      Tara Hospital

·      Kopanong Hospital

·      Sebokeng Hospital

·      All offices of Home Affairs in Gauteng

·      All Clinix Hospitals in Gauteng

·      Stanza Bopape CHC

·      Masakhane Laundry

·      Bronkhospruit Hospital 

·      And Freedom Park in Tshwane.

Nothing was done about these complaints hence workers continue to be infected with COVID-19 while others have lost their lives because of the failure by the department to curb non-compliance to the OHS Act by employers.

Finally, reducing the intervention to a single institution in Gauteng where the department did not intervene is very silly and angering.

Statement issued by NEHAWU Gauteng Coordinator