‘Labour centre queue never ends’
Neverending queues at the local office in Market Street have become an everyday occurrence.
Citizens who have fallen on hard times financially in recent months and need assistance from the Labour Department’s office in Polokwane now have to face another daunting reality: Having to sleep outside the offices at night and be exposed to criminals and the cold.
Neverending queues at the local office in Market Street have become an everyday occurrence, while officials simply say they are working on skeleton staff due to lockdown regulations, and while citizens are encouraged to use the online tools, these are mostly offline.
The General Secretary of the Association of Workers Force (AWF), Rendani Nematswerani, puts the blame squarely on incompetence.
“People simply cannot commute back and forth every day, so they sleep outside the office in an attempt to be assisted first thing in the morning.”
Departmental Spokesperson, Lerato Mashamba told Polokwane Observer that they have on various occasions discouraged customers from sleeping outside the offices, as they cannot ensure their safety.”It is not within our mandate to provide shelter or security,” she said.
According to Mashamba, the office assists more than 150 per day, but was operating on skeleton staff.
Nematswerani refuted this number, saying it is not possible for a person who was number 103 in the queue today and who sleeps outside, to start at number 89 in the queue the next day and still receives no service.
“They simply keep encouraging clients to use their online platforms but that system is mostly faulty.”
He said the union is in talks with the department to find an interim solution. Mashamba in turn further blamed the delays on an unstable system, which often results in staff having to take manual applications, while some delays are caused by incomplete applications, incorrect contact details and some employers who do not cooperate.
“As an alternative, we ask customers to use our online services on www.labour.gov.za and should they have general enquiries, they can contact the office at (015) 299 500.”
In the meantime, Nematswerani said the union has spent the last few days taking lunch and dinner to those who have been sleeping outside the centre.
“It is painful to see mainly the elderly and those who have lost their jobs, sleeping in the streets while the department does nothing to assist them.”
Residents joined in on the conversation, by adding how the department could better assist them:
