SA Migration International

News Articles

South Africa: Zimbabwean Teachers in Northern Cape Are Desperate Following Months Without Pay

Source: By Tariro Washinyira – Groundup, 12/09/2015

Fanuel (not his real name) teaches at a high school in Gaetsewe
District in Northern Cape Province. He says he was last paid in June
2015 because his Zimbabwe Special Permit (ZSP) renewal application to
the Department of Home Affairs is still pending. He appears to be one
of dozens of foreign nationals in a similar position.

Fanuel says that his employer, the Northern Cape Department of
Education (NCDOE), is insisting that if he wants to be paid for June
and July, he must produce a work permit even though he is on a yearly
contract and has been teaching at the same school since 2012.

He says, "We have been working daily ... but come payday, they tell us
we are not employed by the Department of Education. Our colleagues in
other provinces with the same documents as ours are working and
getting paid. We strongly believe that this is [due to] a strong
dislike of foreigners instigated by high powered individuals who have
a total disregard for our survival."

Fanuel claims "this unfair treatment by our employer" contradicts
correspondence from Home Affairs which requested that ZSP applicants
be allowed to continue working until the department has finished
processing them.

"Life is hard, we are failing to put food on the table for our
children yet we are waking up daily to educate South African children
wholeheartedly, some of whom are matriculants. We have been reduced to
the lowest level of borrowing food stuffs from tuck shop owners.

Because we haven't paid for the other stuff we borrowed,
these tuck shop owners are now refusing to give us some groceries on
credit. Our bank balances are negative and at the verge of being
closed. Our personal debts are accumulating to such an extent that no
one is willing to keep lending us money. Our vehicles have broken down
due to lack of service."

Fanuel says that a few weeks ago his child got sick and was vomiting
for three days. He say that if not for his neighbour who helped
financially, his child might not have survived. He has extended family
to support and children attending school in Zimbabwe who were supposed
to pay fees before the third term opened on 8 September 2015. He says
the problem is affecting him emotionally, as well as his work. He
usually goes home in October during school holidays but this year he
will not be able to.

He says in June, on the day the schools closed, he got a call from the
school principal informing him that he might not be paid from July and
the following months if his work permit is not issued. The principal
received a document from the province with all the teachers' names
whose documents expired and are about to expire.

The document, part of which is in GroundUp's possession, contains the
names of 23 teachers whose work permits expired by June. A further 78
teachers are listed whose permits are expected to expire by July. The
vast majority are listed as Zimbabwean, and are waiting for ZSPs, but
a few are from Ghana, Cuba, Namibia and Uganda. Fanuel applied for his
ZSP on 12 December 2014, in advance of the 31 December
deadline.

GroundUp has previously reported on problems with
delays with the processing of these permits.

Thabo Mokgola of the Department of Home Affairs says that his
department is working with the Department of Education in the Northern
Cape to resolve the issue. He says that similar reports had not been
received from other provinces.

In an email Northern Cape provincial education department spokesperson
Sydney Stander says, "It is important to note that the Department
Basic Education is bound by the Constitution to observe all Protocols
guiding the employment of foreign Nationals as encapsulated in
Policies of the Department Of Home Affairs."

He says all foreign nationals employed by the Northern Cape Department
of Education (NCDOE) are supposed to have the relevant documents
allowing them to be in the country, and work here. He says they must
have a valid work permit issued by Home Affairs. "Our records shows
that many foreign teachers, particularly from Zimbabwe, had not
renewed their permits on time and as such that had an impact in terms
of the NCDOE processing their salaries."

He further says, "We are currently processing the salaries of those
that have submitted their work permits late for July and August, and
we have only four teachers who up to now have not submitted valid work
permits. I must note that a work permit is a prerequisite for any
foreign national to be appointed and remunerated. As the Northern Cape
Department of Education, we are not aware of any directive [and we] do
not have any correspondence from the Department of Home Affairs that
advises government departments to continue to employ or remunerate
foreign nationals who do not have the necessary work permits or whose
permits have expired."

Search

Latest News

This was revealed in the 2025 Easter border operations report, which saw border management authority officials, saps officers and home affairs workers intensify efforts to prevent illegal travel into the country over the holiday period.JOHANNESBURG - Zimbabwean nationals have been identified as the leading individuals attempting to illegally gain entry into South Africa.... Read more...

THE High Court has nullified the re-registration of a birth certificate for a child born out of wedlock, ordering the Registrar-General to strike it from the records.This ruling declared the birth certificate invalid, questioning the legality of attributing paternity to a deceased man decades after his death.The dispute arose from a contested inheritance involving the late Lazarus Mkuduâs estate.Teresiah Mkudu, the applicant, sought a declaratory order to invalidate Ruvimbo Manyondaâs birth certificate, issued nearly 20 years after Mkuduâs death.... Read more...

Residents from 34 countries can now apply for a visa to South Africa online. There are now 34 countries that can apply for a visa to South Africa online, which National Treasury says will help attract more tourists and skills into the country.This was trumpeted in Wednesday`s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) as being one of the key successes of Operation Vulindlela. Operation Vulindlela is a joint initiative of the Presidency and National Treasury to assist in the acceleration of critical reforms needed to accelerate the economy.... Read more...