Exasperated employees from Grahamstown’s Department of Social Development have no idea who to turn to get their severely contaminated working environment improved.
Exasperated employees from Grahamstown’s Department of Social Development have no idea who to turn to get their severely contaminated working environment improved.
Left without a cleaning service for the better part of six months, the working conditions inside the building has in some cases reached dangerously unsanitary levels.
Despite the many efforts of the employees to keep the department clean, the grounds surrounding the impressive blue building are strewn with garbage.
A septic sludge fills one corner of the property as sewage from the dirty toilets leak from the drains. Untended for more than a month, the filthy toilets have caused several female staff members to break out in uncomfortable rashes and infections.
The situation is worsened further by a shortage of water in Joza. Anonymous employees report they are kept in the dark by the management and are unsure as to why the building is not being cleaned.
Their complaints to management about the situation have been met with the response that they must live with it. Officials from the Department of Labour were unavailable for comment at the time of going to print.
