Former COVID-19 Workers Threaten Protest at Gauteng Premier’s Office

A group of former COVID-19 contract workers, expressing deep dissatisfaction, have issued a stern warning that they intend to stage a sit-in protest outside the offices of Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi in Johannesburg—their demand: the immediate renewal of their contracts.

With unwavering determination, these former workers have declared their intention to remain camped outside Lesufi’s offices until he addresses their demands and reinstates their contracts.

According to SABC News, the group alleges that the provincial health department has ignored a directive from Premier Lesufi to extend their contracts until 2024. The workers’ contracts had lapsed in March this year, leaving them uncertain.

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Most of these contract workers worked at the Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital in Ga-Rankuwa, located north of Pretoria.

Niola Mashishi, one of the affected individuals, highlighted the gravity of their predicament. She recounted, “I’m one of the COVID-19 contract workers who’ve been left out, on the first [of] August when 511 COVID workers were given appointment letters to go back to their work. Now our issue here is that the Premier announced that all COVID contractors whose contracts expire on 31 March 2023, should go back to work. But unfortunately, that didn’t happen. So now we will be going to the Premier’s office to seek answers.”

The workers’ impending protest reflects the urgent need for resolution and the collective frustration stemming from the uncertainty surrounding their employment status during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Picture: Pexels / Laura James

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