Joburg primary school accused of racial pay gap

Allegations that white and Indian staff at Mulbarton Primary School in Johannesburg are paid as much as double as their black counterparts have caused an outcry, IOL reports.

Official documents show a white groundsman having received as much as R5,000 more than his black colleagues, including R1,000 more than a black Grade 7 teacher with a tertiary education.

It is also alleged that a white administrator was paid R23,000 a month while a black administrator in an equivalent position earned just R11,400.

The school’s Indian senior staff, including its principal, stand accused of discriminating against black teachers in favour of Indian and white ones.

An Indian SGB member at the school was also accused of arguing that black teachers were not preferred as “they will compromise the standards and culture of the school”.

READ MORE: Schools become racism hotbed

The Citizen attempted to contact the school’s principal but was unsuccessful at the time of publication.

Gauteng department of education spokesperson Steve Mabona told The Star that the matter had been resolved in December, and that while black staff used to be paid less, this was no longer the case.

He added that the department would be monitoring the school, which agreed to “reflect on all contracts and staff salaries by May 2019”.

He also dismissed allegations that the Indian SGB member had made racist remarks as false, saying he had only warned against the school implementing “equity for the sake of it” and called for “competency versus equity”.

“Please note that Mulbarton Primary School does not formulate any discriminatory policies, nor does it seek to favour non-African staff,” he said.

(Compiled by Daniel Friedman)

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