Disabled community find fulfillment in packaging job
After battling cancer Brightness Cele's leg was amputated in 2007.
BRIGHTNESS Cele is one of the employees who works at the centre. After battling cancer, Cele’s left leg was amputated in 2007. Today, she uses a prosthetic leg to get around. After working at the centre for more than a year, Cele says she is thriving.
“All I can say is I’m happy to be working here. This job means everything to me. I am able to pay all my bills,” she said. The Umlazi resident said she had several jobs before finding a home at Saint Giles.
“When you lose your leg, not everything is easy, but I have managed,” she said. Now, Cele is enjoying her role at the work centre.
“I have my technique when I’m packaging. I’m a fast learner,” she said.
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Production controller and operations manager Trevor Naidoo has been working at Saint Giles for the past eight years. Employees at the work centre package various products for a range of companies, including PME Cake and Unilever as well as Gofund, Vivo Glow, WearCheck and Astro Pack.
On days when they package spices, employees will fill 12 480 cartons in a 6.5-hour day.
“Our employees are very good at what they do,” said Naidoo.
Spices are packaged in bulk sizes ranging from 200-800 grams for the hospitality industry or smaller 12-17 gram packages for household use.
When Berea Mail dropped by, employees were packaging cake stencils for PME. Naidoo said that 90% of the work centre staff are living with disabilities – 33 employees work at the Saint Giles centre, and there are 71 staff employed in total, with some staff working at a Pinetown-based branch. “We also have some able-bodies employees who operate machinery,” he added.
The KZN floods have left a lasting impact on the centre as supply plants have to repair damage. “At the moment, it is very quiet – we don’t have much work coming through due to supply shortages. Some plants were damaged in the recent floods. We are trying to find more work – we are available to businesses who need products packaged,” he said.
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Employees have also faced challenges as they travel from areas impacted by the floods. “Some of our employees live in rural areas – they have to cross rivers to get here. For the disabled, it’s quite a challenge,” he said.
While the Saint Giles work centre team is employed on a permanent basis, they are paid weekly by an hourly rate. With less work, their salaries have been impacted.
Contact Naidoo on 073 394 3551 or Saint Giles on 031 337 4404.
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