JOHANNESBURG - Ahead of the 30 June anti-migrant marches, thousands of migrant workers were allegedly dismissed or went without pay as employers feared retaliation from protesters.
The Casual Workers Advice Office says some workers were told not to return to work before Tuesday’s unofficial deadline for migrants to leave South Africa.
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The office’s Andile Nyembezi says they have received about 1,500 complaints over the past week. Most of the complaints have come from farm workers, employees in the food industry and those working for Chinese-owned companies.
"They have come to us saying they were told to leave because their employers claimed they would be sued or fined, they have to leave before the 30th," says Nyembezi.
Many workers say they were told to leave without being paid.
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"They say all they need is money to get onto the bus to get back home," he says. This is because most landlords who host the illegal migrants also give them ultimatums.
Nyembezi says workers employed by some Chinese-owned companies are often abandoned by their employers, who return to China when trouble arises.
Nyembezi says that while the law can intervene in some cases, its reach is limited because many of the workers lack documentation. Cases that would ordinarily be referred to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) often cannot proceed.
"It is not the job of the CCMA to ask whether they have permits or not or documentation," says Nyembezi.