Yet another provincial department building has been flagged as unsafe by staff and in need of urgent renovation.
Employees at the department of roads in Bhisho drafted a petition to their bosses last week complaining of the conditions at the Chungwa building.
They claim there is no proper ventilation in their offices , that the roof leaks and pieces of ceiling were falling apart.
They also said the building had no compliance certificate.
They gave the department’s management an ultimatum to address their concerns or they would report for work, but stay outside the building.
Public works managers met the employees on Tuesday to map out a plan..
“The matters have now been escalated to the provincial office [Nehawu]. We have written to the public works HoD but took a copy to the provincial Nehawu office so that they can deal with it,” Nehawu branch chairman at the department of transport, Nkosinathi Malinga said. An employee working in the building, told the Dispatch they had been informed at the meeting that plans to renovate the building had been in the pipeline for some time.
“It transpired at the meeting that a service provider has been contracted to look into the falling ceilings and the leaks, which were identified as the main cause of the falling ceilings. We were also informed that 80 people from the social development department will be accommodated in this already strained building, which we did not take kindly to, and the matter has since been referred to our unions for further discussion,” the employee said.
The Dispatch was told by a labour department official, who was not authorised to speak to the media, that the department had inspected the building upon request of the unions. “We felt it was not safe for human occupation. They will be sending the notification stating their findings to management once compiled,” the source said
Transport spokesperson Khuselwa Rantjie referred questions to public works.
Public works spokesperson Vuyokazi Mbanjwa confirmed the building did not have a compliance certificate.
“However a contractor has been appointed to carry out renovations. Once the renovations have been completed a compliance certificate will be issued.
“There was a challenge with air-conditioning, which has since been rectified, and the air-conditioners are operational. “There is a leaking roof and the department has appointed a service provider and is on site to repair the small part which is leaking,” she said.
Last month employees from the department of social development and economic development were moved from the Beacon Hill building because of a gas leak that led to some employees being taken for a medical check-up...