The Select Committee on Labour and Public Enterprises yesterday went on an unannounced oversight visit to the Mitchell’s Labour Centre. This visit follows those that were undertaken by the Committee in August last year in the Cape Town and Bellville Labour Centres.
The committee decided on the oversight visit to the labour centres in order to assess the work of the Department of Labour (DoL) against its priorities as set out in the strategic plan of 2010-2015, including the following:
- Focus on the provincial offices and labour centres for improved and effective service delivery
- Evaluate if the department has empowered staff at access points to deliver the entire range of the DoL’s services and information, inclusive of employment services, social security and labour protection services
- Assess if the Employment Services System and the Inspectorate Enforcement Case Management System have been enhanced to respond to clients’ needs and expectations for access to services and information
- Assess if measures have been put in place to encourage ongoing learning and improvement, and innovation by those serving at the point of contact with the client.
The committee discovered some areas of concern at the centres:
- There were no special queues for pregnant women, people with infants, disabled or elderly people: these vulnerable groups were in queues that waited for up to four or five hours
- Clients complained of long delays for money to be paid into their accounts
- Sometimes files went missing, which further delayed the process because applicants had to reapply: this can be attributed to a poor filing system in the department
- The committee noted that the attitude of staff to visitors was poor
- There was a shortage of available staff
- A number of Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) beneficiaries complained of not having received their benefits for an extended period of time.
The Chairperson for the Select Committee on Labour and Public Enterprises, Mrs Priscilla Themba, said she noticed that all three centres faced similar challenges. She was concerned about the behaviour of some government officials. “I will raise the findings of the oversight visit to the department when they come before the committee,” she said. The committee will present the report of the oversight to the National Council of Provinces, with recommendations to the department to remedy the problems and challenges faced by labour centres.
Enquiries:
Yoliswa Landu
Cell: 073 738 0182
Tel: 021 403 8203
E-mail: ylandu@parliament.gov.za
Source: Parliament of South Africa
