Durban Country Club defends “no salary, only a free lunch” job advert

The Durban Country Club has shed some light on its  “no salary, only a free lunch” job advert after being the subject of online attacks recently.  

The job advert, which was posted last week, is for a graduate programme for interns who want to gain some experience in the hospitality, sport and club management sector.

The advert sparked anger among social media users after it was revealed the interns would not be receiving a stipend. 

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Gerard Metzer, general manager of the Durban Country Club defended the advert saying they were offering valuable work experience.

Metzer said, “A lot of people have been retrenched from their jobs and were looking for something to do. We have had an overwhelming response to our advert. The people who have demonstrated interest in the job have put aside short term gain for long term benefit.” 

Metzer said the post had now been closed and they have selected a crop of interested interns. 

When asked whether the online backlash would lead to the DCC reversing their stance on remuneration, Metzer said it depends.

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“It will be up to individual performances and how they perform. There will be a screening process to determine (remuneration),” he said.

Much of the comments online was that the DCC was exclusionary to a lot of poor applicants, people who cannot afford to travel to work everyday without an income. 

Metzer responded the post was geo-tagged to only be shown to people within the Umhlanga and Durban vicinity.

Durban Country Club’s golf course is rated as one of the Top 100 Golf Courses in the World by Golf Magazine USA.

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