NEHAWU Mpumalanga Statement On The Non Payment Of Security Personnel In Public Health Institutions

24th January 2020

NEHAWU Mpumalanga Statement On The Non Payment Of Security Personnel In Public Health Institutions

The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union [NEHAWU] in Mpumalanga is concerned about the lack of security in public healthcare institutions including hospitals and clinics in the province.

Security personnel embarked on a strike following the non-payment of salaries by their employers and the Mpumalanga provincial government thus exposing our members and patients to safety risks.

Just recently a male patient was shot and brutally killed at the Witbank Hospital and we have been observed a huge increase in violence directed to our members, workers and patients in healthcare institutions across the province.

As NEHAWU, we are not satisfied with the pace the provincial government is handling this matter and their inability to pay security service providers on time is directly putting our members and patients at risk of being attacked by criminal elements. In this regard, we call on the provincial government to fix the situation immediately and we demand a commitment that such a blunder will never be repeated.

NEHAWU will continue to call for the insourcing of security services by the Mpumalanga provincial government and we shall not rest until that demand is acceded to.

We therefore appeal to the government to speedily resolve this matter before Monday 27th January 2020. Failure to resolve it will leave us with no option but to mobilise all members in the affected institutions to withdraw their labour and embark on a total shut down.

Issued by NEHAWU