KAWU slams property and security company owners
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0 Kungwini Amalgamated Workers Union (KAWU) has slammed property owners, spaza shop owners and private security company owners across Gauteng for underpaying and undermining security guards who risk their lives protecting their businesses and properties.
KAWU is one of the biggest trade unions in the security sector in South Africa which fights for employees’ rights and improved wages and working conditions. It also promotes and defends the socio-economic interests of workers, fights against arbitrary and unfair dismissal of workers and encourages the settlement of disputes between members and employers or employer’s organisation by conciliation, mediation and arbitration
Most security guards across Gauteng are paid a skimpy salary of less than R3000, but according to the South African laws, the salaries of security guards in the country vary according to their grading. At the end of 2019 the average salary, across all gradings, was R6 560, 00 per month. The minimum salary, based on the National Minimum Wage Act, is R20, 00 per hour.
However, according to the National Bargaining Council for the Private Security Sector the Basic minimum salaries for the security guards are as follows; Grade A R5 986, 00, Grade B R5 409, 00 and Grade C, D & E R4 805, 00.
“We have been doing some surveys and researching on the livelihoods of our members and general security personnel at large. We are appalled that most security guards manning flats or spaza shops across Johannesburg and Pretoria are being paid R3000, 00 o less. We view this insult to our membership and security people at large. Our Union is lobbying and calling upon all security personnel who are taken advantage of being underpaid to approach us. We are here to assist them to live better lives as stipulated by the laws of this country. You cannot have any person living with or earning less than what the laws of the country demand. We will fight until the security guards live better lives like all employees.
“We also discovered that the owners of Spaza shops are also exploiting their security personnel. It seems this problem is huge and needs every security guard to come forward. We need to come up with collective decisions as we move forward seeking better lives for security guards,” noted Moyo.
“It has come to our attention that most of the security guards out there are still exploited and taken advantage of by security companies’ owners and property owners,” said Khumbulani Moyo, the National Coordinator of KAWU.
Moyo also took a swipe at private security company owners for “not being considerate”.
“We also have those private security company owners who do not care about the welfare and well being of their employees. To them, our security guards are just like objects that bring money to them. How can someone underpay a person who is making money for them? I still cannot believe what is being experienced by the security guards. We need to start documenting all these challenges faced by security guards and engage relevant stakeholders in government for them to also interfere and deal with the culprits. Security guards are suffering in silence out there, we need an extra arm and assistance by the government so as to correct this incongruity,” he added.
Kawu is also vowing to partner up with law enforcement agents to curb other illicit activities faced by the security sector industry.
“From now onwards, we will be also working with our Shop stewards, Bargaining Council and PSIRA, Home Affairs and Department of labour and other law enforcement agents in fighting all non-complying companies when it comes to the wellbeing of security guards. We will as well tackle the issue of employment of individuals who are not registered with statutory bodies such as PSIRA. We must recall that the security industry is one of the sectors that are reserved for South African citizens as per regulations of PSIRA. We need a collective effort to control and manage things for a better sector guided by the country’s laws,” said Moyo.
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