EPWP workers march for permanent jobs and better pay

CWP worker Ewart Sithebe, in the yellow jacket with a microphone, led the crowd. Photo: Warren Mabona

Hundreds of workers affiliated with the Maanda-Ashu Workers Union of South Africa (MAWUSA) marched to the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure in Pretoria on Monday, demanding permanent employment and better pay.

The workers are temporarily employed through the government’s Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) and the Community Work Programme (CWP), doing work such as road maintenance and street sweeping.

They gathered at the old Putco bus depot in Marabastad in the morning, before marching to the department’s offices. Members of political movement Afrika Mayibuye also participated in the march.

CWP worker Ewart Sithebe from Alexandra, north of Johannesburg, said he is a supervisor but earns just over R1,900 a month.

“I feel frustrated at the end of every month when I receive my monthly pay,” said the single father of two. “The money is very little and I cannot buy enough food and pay monthly bills.”

Another worker, Zakhele Khumalo, described his monthly wage as “peanuts”, saying he cannot consistently pay his funeral cover.

“My children feel happy whenever they see me going to work,” said Khumalo. “But I feel frustrated at the end of the month because I can’t buy nice things for them.”

The march proceeded peacefully, with workers singing and dancing. Music blared from a bakkie leading the crowd, and bystanders waved and cheered. Tensions rose when the marchers arrived at the department’s headquarters on Madiba Street. Some workers shouted at officials standing under police guard outside the building.

A memorandum containing six demands was handed to the department by MAWUSA president Robert Mwendo, who told the crowd the union would not ignore members’ struggles.

“We are not going to allow anyone to abuse our mothers and fathers in our presence,” said Mwendo. “We are here to demand permanent jobs. We cannot continue to live on empty promises.”

The workers’ demands included

• full-time employment for all CWP and EPWP workers;
• payment of gratuities for CWP workers whose contracts were terminated after more than ten to 15 years of service without benefits;
• payment of all outstanding wages due to system errors;
• immediate delivery of personal protective equipment and tools of trade, not supplied for three to four years; and
• equal minimum wages with other sectors.

The memo was accepted by Adam Mthonbeni, deputy director-general for inter-relations at the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, who told workers the department would give them feedback in due course.

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