BLF supports eMbalenhle unemployed in bid to find jobs
Forum gives Sasol 30 days to respond to their memorandum.
The eMbalenhle Community Forum has vowed not to back down until locals have 80 per cent employment at Sasol.
The forum recently submitted their memorandum to the Sasol head office in Sandton.
Mr Khehla Mahlangu, leader of the forum, said they decided to go to the head office to make known their their dissatisfaction with Sasol’s recruitment policy.
He said jobs are given to outsiders, while locals are suffering and are ignored by Sasol.
This was a follow-up march after the one they had in February were hundreds of unemployed locals, mainly the youth, held a protest at the Sasol Charlie 1 gate in their desperation to be employed.
Mr Mahlangu said after the February march they had a meeting with Sasol and that Sasol told them they have signed an agreement with the service providers to employ 80 per cent of the local youths.
“This was never implemented and our people are still struggling because of unemployment. We want Sasol to deal with their service provider and to monitor where and how locals are employed.
“The Sasol service providers and their site agents are ignoring us and are hiring their own people.
“When we look for jobs in other towns, we are assaulted.
“Our people were assaulted by the community at Sasol 1 and told us to return to Secunda.
“Thousands of outsiders are taking our jobs locally.”
Mr Mahlangu said another problem is skills development.
He said Mshiniwami Training Academy trains a large number of people, but they end up stuck because they do not get an opportunity to do in-service training.
“Mshiniwami is doing very well, but the companies operating in Sasol do not want to give the youth a chance to do the in-service training.”
The locals were supported by the BLF during their march in Sandton.
Sasol confirmed that they received the memorandum and said they will respond to the memorandum soon.
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