Three members of Mangaung Metro’s 2019 traffic learnership cohort, turned metro police trainees, tell OFM News anonymously that they are in a state of limbo with no idea what their future will look like. In December 2021, the municipality stopped paying this class their R2500 monthly stipends and informed them abruptly that their contracts with the metro had come to an end. The disgruntled group is now disputing several aspects of their dismissal.

It is important to note that whilst the original advertisement for the traffic learnership made no promises of full-time employment upon completion of their diploma, they were during training promised full-time placement, only if they underwent the metro police training – which they did and completed.

Which contracts did the metro terminate?

For one, they allege that when they transferred from basic traffic training to the law enforcement skills programme (LESP) meant for metro police officials, they did not sign contracts to that effect. Raising the question, when the metro says their contracts had come to an end, which contracts were they referring to, seeing as the only contract three of the 100 trainees confirm signing was that for the basic traffic learnership in 2019?

Secondly, the group before them – the 2018 cohort – signed LESP, a.k.a metro police training contracts, spanning two years. As a result, they are presently earning their stipends, despite the fact that they are sitting at home, watching the drama regarding the police department unfold.

The disparity in stipends

Whilst both the 2018 and 2019 classes were moved to the law enforcement skills programme (LESP) meant for the metro police route from the basic traffic training, they were not earning the same amount in terms of stipends.

The 2018 class’ stipend was R6500, whilst the 2019 class received R2500 upon this bridge from one discipline to the other. They allege that when they asked why they were earning less in September 2021, they were told “Mangaung doesn’t have a budget”.

Technicalities aside, it appears this 2019 group is a casualty of the Mangaung Metro Police woes.

Victims of a political battle

The termination of the aforementioned trainees’ employment happened on the back of National Treasury ordering that the Mangaung Metro Police be abandoned – a decision which was reversed in late December 2021 by the Bloemfontein High Court.

READ MORE: Mangaung Metro Police debacle continues

The anonymous group is of the view that they and their fellow 97 classmates are just the victims of a political battle in the metro, because the metro police department has, in fact, been greenlit, legally speaking.

“A lot of us are depressed, even in our conversations with another. We had a very cold December not getting paid. There are people who needed to pay rent, there are people with families who needed to ensure that their children had Christmas clothes and that their parents had food on the table. But we didn’t have that, because Mangaung kept us in the cold,” says the trainee.

Another trainee says they invested their time and money purchasing uniforms and learning material, only to be left in limbo.

“I’d like them to stop using us as pawns on a chessboard because this is just a political battle, it has nothing to do with the legal system. The law has already said that this thing is legal and must continue,” says another trainee.

READ MORE: Treasury shoots down planned Mangaung Metro Police establishment

The Mangaung Metro says they will respond to OFM News’ queries soon.

OFM News