The Department of Employment of Employment and Labour Minister, Thulas Nxesi has taken to the streets, addressing employers and employees this week and last week assuring them that Department is committed to ameliorating financial hardships for workers of affected, destroyed or looted businesses.

Minister Nxesi addressed attendees in Vosloorus, Soweto and Kempton park Civic Centre in a two-day consultation process a programme aimed at engaging with the employers and workers of the businesses concerned and to undertake assessment of the damaged infrastructure. Last week he addressed workers and employers in KwaZulu-Natal and is due to return to the province next week.

In the interactions, Minister Nxesi assured workers and employers that through a Cabinet approval, the department initiated a Destroyed, Affected or Looted Workplaces: Temporary Financial Relief Scheme which was gazetted earlier this week.

"All the Department’s Labour Centres, with the assistance of the Labour Inspectors, visited Shopping Centres/Malls and Business outlets in their areas to obtain information on the establishments that were affected by the public violence," said Minister Nxesi.

Information obtained has indicated that a total of 76 Shopping Malls and Centres - especially in the Sedibeng, broader West-Rand, Soweto/Roodepoort, Mamelodi and Ekurhuleni areas - were severely affected. In addition, the province estimates that over 22 000 workers were directly affected and thus may be eligible to be considered for benefit and other programmes such as those planned to be offered by the Public Employment Services for work opportunities.

"The Department has put in place the interventions to ameliorate conditions of the workers and employers. We will be　avoiding any in-person employee applications and therefore appeal to employers to apply on behalf of the workers," Minister Nxesi added.

For an employer to apply on behalf of its employees under the Scheme, it must satisfy the following requirements. It must:

 

• register with the Fund if it is not already registered.

 

 

• If registered, or upon registration with the Fund, the employer must state that:

 

 

• the employer’s closure is directly linked to the unrest; and

 

 

• it must confirm in writing or electronically that:

 

 

• it accepts the terms of the Scheme; and

 

 

• it must provide details of damage caused and submit documentary proof of a report of that damage to the South African Police Services and, if insured, the insurance claim; and

 

 

• must submit any other information that the Commissioner may require. A number of initiatives and a broad range of proposed interventions were discussed in order to address

 

Minister Nxesi also urged employers to be compliant with legislation and flagged the issue where the department has found that some employers were not paying over UIF contributions even though they deducted from employees and in some cases, were not registered with the Fund at all.