Day labour – a tough job
It's reached the point where you cannot drive a kilometre in town without seeing a group of day labourers sitting on the sidewalk with dejection written all over their faces.
One of the men raised his voice from the back of the growing crowd of day labourers as they tried to tell their story to the News. “Government always promises jobs when we have to vote, but we never get any work,” he lamented.
“Guys from other countries are working, but not us,” a second chimed in.
These are some of the workers who sit on the lawns and on the sidewalks right down Viljoen Street. You might recognise the same faces there week in and week out for years on end. Most said they’ve been waiting there for jobs for four years. Some said 10. Johannes Koka has been without a job for just over 20 years. Every day he waits in the sun by the side of the road, holding his hand out for the occasional piece job.
Those who use their services are usually home- or small business owners who need work done on their premises –gardening, construction, plumbing or painting – but they don’t need someone full-time. Their solution is as simple as driving down the road, asking for two or three hands, and picking them up. Remuneration can vary from R50 to R200 a day, depending on the work that needs to be done. If they’re lucky, they might get a job that requires a week’s labour.
“Sometimes we wait three hours for someone to be picked up. Many days there is no work,” Xolisani Mamshe explained. He was one of the at least 30 day labourers who were waiting on the church’s lawn.
They’re looking to local and national government, asking why there are no jobs for them, while every day the throng grows larger and larger. It’s reached the point where you cannot drive a kilometre in town without seeing a group of day labourers sitting on the sidewalk with dejection written all over their faces.
