The workers visited the offices of Afrikan Alliance of Social Democrats (AASD) leader and director in a company linked to G4S, Papi Mokwena, at Hostel 1 in Bloemfontein on Friday (14/8). Mokwena described the situation facing the workers as devastating for families.

“It’s a plight of mothers and fathers that is heartbreaking when it is said people don’t get employed because of lack of skills, but you have these people who are highly trained who the department of correctional services have decided to marginalise.”

Uncertainty

Spokesperson for the affected former G4S employees Lesly Ramathibe said workers remain in uncertainty because G4S has not terminated their contracts or paid out their pensions. 

He said the matter stems from a court ruling delivered on 29 April concerning Section 197 of the Labour Relations Act, which regulates the transfer of a business as a going concern.

The judgment meant employees should transfer automatically to the new employer when the business changes hands.

“According to the court order, all G4S employees are now the custodians of the department of correctional services. However, the department has appealed that, and it is still pending. We want G4S to retrench us because on the system of labour we still appear as employed, but we don’t have any employer at the moment; we are not getting any salaries from anybody.”  

Ramathibe said almost 200 employees remain in limbo because they have nowhere to report for duty while the appeal process continues. The workers approached Mokwena in a desperate attempt to obtain assistance.

Mokwena criticised the way the department has handled the transition, arguing that even some employees who were absorbed into DCS were placed in lower-level positions despite having extensive experience and qualifications. 

He said workers with up to 15 years of experience had allegedly been appointed to entry-level security posts without recognition of their previous service.

Unemployed

“There are a lot of them here today who are about to lose their houses, their livelihoods, kids are at school, and they are unemployed because the DCS is not taking them. 

“We have been working on it from my side as a representative of Bloemfontein correctional contracts that had subcontracted G4S. We believe this thing is fairly unfair because these people are highly trained custodial officers who have enormous experience.”

Mokwena said many of the affected officials had played an important role in rehabilitation and skills development at the correctional centre. He committed to escalating the matter with his board and escalating it to the parliamentary portfolio committee and the Presidency.

On 1 July, DCS officially assumed full control of the Mangaung Correctional Centre, which has since been renamed Grootvlei Maximum Correctional Centre. Instead of a blanket absorption of all former G4S staff, the department conducted a public recruitment process in which hundreds of former employees applied for positions. 

Creditors

The process has triggered legal disputes and challenges from labour organisations. The workers were not only seeking jobs but also documentation that would allow them to deal with creditors while the court matter continues.

“They said they have talked to their former employer; they can’t get any joy in relation to whether they get letters of retrenchment or letters indicating that there’s a pending court case so that they can deal with their creditors. 

“It’s a plight of mothers and fathers. So it's heartbreaking when it is said people don’t get employed because of lack of skills, but you have these people who are highly trained who the DCS has decided to marginalise and not take over.” 

Meanwhile, parliament’s portfolio committee on correctional services has urged the department to fill 309 vacant posts at Grootvlei Maximum Correctional Centre by the end of September. 

The committee welcomed the appointment of 310 of the 495 former G4S employees who were taken into DCS after the takeover, but said suitably qualified former employees should be prioritised for the remaining vacancies, provided they meet the minimum requirements.

Unsuccessful applicants

The committee has also called for unsuccessful applicants to be informed in writing of the reasons for their non-appointment. The facility has remained under scrutiny following the 2022 escape of convicted rapist and murderer Thabo Bester and now operates as a three-tier security centre with low, medium and maximum-security units under direct state administration.

OFM News/Kekeletso Mosebetsi dg

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