According to a released statement by Provincial Chief Inspector Advocate Michael Msiza, the seven Chinese and Taiwanese nationals who were busted last week for the alleged trafficking of illegal immigrants and subjecting them to forced labour in a factory appeared on 21 November in the Johannesburg Magistrates’ Court.
Msiza said the four men and three women were arrested on 12 November in a joint operation by the Department of Employment and Labour’s Inspection and Enforcement Services in Gauteng together with the South African Police Services, and the Hawks Unit. The arrests followed a tip-off that the Chinese and Taiwanese nationals were allegedly involved in the trafficking of illegal immigrants and subjecting them to forced labour.
The accused have not yet been formally charged and were remanded in custody and will appear on 28 November for bail applications, said Msiza.
Msiza added that the department’s joint operation was at the premises of a company called Beautiful City located in Village Deep, Johannesburg. He said children were working in the factory and that the employer was violating labour legislation including National Minimum Wage, Occupational Health and Safety Act and Basic Conditions of Employment Act.
Msiza said an audit by the department found that there were 91 workers employed at the factory during the raid.
“According to the Department of Employment and Labour Gauteng Chief Inspector, Advocate Michael Msiza, the employer owes the Unemployment Insurance Fund R261 231.42 for non-registration, declaration and payments for 91 employees who were found on the premises,” said Msiza.
“The employer has not only contravened the Unemployment Insurance Act and Unemployment Insurance Contributions Act but has further spat in the face of the vulnerable by disregarding Section 27 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa that guarantees employees the right to social security.”
Related article:
https://northeasterntribune.co.za/194890/human-trafficking-is-a-reality/
