Segokgo Security Workers Decry Poor Conditions
Pini Bothoko | Monday January 21, 2019 14:01
The employees raised a number of issues that included long working hours without payment for overtime, late payments to mention but a few.
Employees engaged amongst clinics in Tlokweng blamed their leadership accusing them of giving them their backs when raising complaints concerning their welfare.
They claimed to be paid late every month and are forced to work long hours, which they insisted contravened labour laws.
Another employee pointed out that sometimes workers are picked at random hours whenever work is available at times being picked despite arriving from a night shift.
Workers said it has been a number of months receiving their payments late something that has since affected their relationship with their landlords.
Disgruntled employees claimed to have long raised their complaints over late payments and poor working conditions with their employer, but their concerns have since fallen on deaf ears.
The Monitor is reliable informed that the employees spent their Christmas and New Year’s holidays without their payments.
The late payment was alleged to have been going on since the company was established back in 2017, as they would each month go for more than 45 days eagerly waiting for their payments.
Workers also claimed to be working under unsafe conditions, especially at night without guarding equipment.
The dejected employees alleged that since they were employed in February 2017 to date, they were still waiting to be issued boots as currently they use their own shoes.
“This is oppression at its best (late payments) and it has been going on for months. This company has long abused us. That’s why we have decided to disclose our grievances to the media,” one employee said, who preferred anonymity fearing victimisation.
The workers raised a concern that they were not allowed to take leave, thuogh the employer refuses to pay them their leave days.
The dejected workers said their employer has not adjusted their salaries despite government approval of minimum wage six percent hike for 2017-2018 back in November 1, 2017.
“We work from January to December without being allowed to take leave days. What hurt the most is that the company also refuses to pay us for our leave days. As we speak each and every employee is owed P1,064.35 in backpays and have long been promised those payments but to date nothing,” the employee bemoaned.
They went on to disclose that they work under dangerous conditions at night where they are exposed to danger without proper uniform and protective equipments like handcuffs, torches to mention but a few.
“I am a woman and working at night without protective equipment, just increases the risk I am faced with. We are being oppressed because there are no job opportunities in Botswana.
“Our employer is exploiting us knowing that there is nowhere we can go.
“We are even afraid to raise our complaints with them anymore because we are being victimised. Employees are hired on a daily basis and do not go under training, which is risky looking at the kind of job that we do,” said another employee.
The managing director of Segokgo Security Services Tladi conceded to be struggling to pay his employees on time, but blamed District Health Management Teams (DHMT) for late payments in order to timely pay his workers.
Tladi said the safety of his employees has always been extremely important to him and has been engaging directly with his employees on issues that matter to them.
“I will continue to do so because it’s the right thing to do. I agree that usually they receive their payments a bit late, but DHMT has since promised to improve their payments. I have in the past raised these concerns with Tlokweng Sub- Council’s Norah Nkgwe and the district commissioner hence I am hopeful that they will engage DHMT on the matter,” Tladi said when reached for comment.
Quizzed on the matter, chairperson Nkgwe said Tladi raised payment delays to her after she contacted him concerning employee’s late payments.
Nkgwe said every beginning of the month Segokgo Security Services employees visit her office to raise their grievances of late payments.
“Have contacted Tladi on the matter and he told me that the delay is caused by DHMT as they pay him late something that has since affected his relationship with his employees. I even engaged the district commissioner on the matter who even contacted DHMT and they promised to improve on his timely payments,” Nkgwe said.