The affected offices include Mitchells Plain Labour Centre, a satellite office in Nyanga and Paarl Labour Centre in the Western Cape.

Paarl Labour Centre also since confirmed a positive case and the office has been closed from today.

The department said the labour centres will remain closed to allow workers who may have been in contact with the affected employees to self-isolate and for decontamination to take place.

The Western Cape’s Chief Director of provincial operations, Mawele Ntamo, said the officials have interacted with other employees who were working at the labour centres, The affected employees will now self-isolate and also be referred for counselling.

Meanwhile, the department says offices have been conducting regular assessments of staff which include daily health checks and temperature screening.

The Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) head office based in Pretoria also closed its doors on Wednesday after an employee tested positive for the virus.

It is expected that the closure of the UIF office will impact on the operations of the fund, however, it won’t affect the payment process.

The Director-General of the Department Thobile Lamati says that the safety of staff remained paramount.

“Our officials are an important cog of the working of the South African economy and as such, we will also ensure that they are as safe as possible,” he said.

According to the department, offices that were affected last week by Covid-19 which include Vredenburg in the Western Cape and East London in the Eastern Cape were able to resume operations.

Meanwhile, the department says it is expected that Paarl Labour Centre will open on Monday, while Mitchells Plain Labour Centre, Nyanga Satellite Office as well as the UIF will open to the public next week Thursday, 25 June.

The department is encouraging clients to make use of the department’s online services in the meantime.

African News Agency (ANA)