JOHANNESBURG - The City of Johannesburg has welcomed 1879 cleaners who start their first day of work on Sunday after being insourced, and who will gain greatly from employee benefits such as pension, medical aid, and an increased take home salary.
"On 17 August 2019, we welcomed the first 450 beneficiaries of this insourcing programme, and due to their sheer number the remaining 1429 cleaners were registered the following day as well as last weekend," mayor Herman Mashaba said on Sunday.
Many of these beneficiaries spoke of their experiences of years of exploitation and neglect, but due to the hard work and dedication of the Johannesburg multi-party government they were able to share their relief and gratitude for the change that finally came, he said.
Previously, the cleaners earned R3000 a month, while the city paid around R6500 per cleaner to the outsourced companies they worked for. These cleaners would now be able to take home over R4000 a month after deductions of a salary of around R5600 a month.
In addition, the insourcing initiative would also ensure stable and predictable payment of salaries to these employees – a standard practice which was allegedly sorely missing under their previous employers.
Through this insourcing programme, the City of Johannesburg was giving real dignity to workers who had been the subject of exploitation for decades, Mashaba said.
"The insourcing of our cleaning staff is therefore a timely step meant to keep away the ravages of politically-induced exploitative tenderpreneurship as well as under-employment and unemployment."
The insourcing of cleaners followed the successful insourcing of security guards, which had brought dignity to close to 4000 families. The insourcing programme had without doubt ensured that security staff, and now also cleaning staff, were treated fairly and with the respect they deserved, Mashaba said.