Gauteng EMS workers take their grievances to Luthuli House

Lebohang Likhoeli‚ 45‚ hardly spends time with her children because she works up to 15 hours a day as a paramedic at Sedibeng emergency services.

Likhoeli says she leaves home at 6am for work and arrives back 15 hours later.

“Working extra hours without remuneration contributed to the end of my eight-year marriage.

“He did not believe that I was at work because I was not bringing home money for those hours. We fought a lot and the time I arrived home from work was always an issue. I did not spend a lot of time at home with him and the kids but I could not leave my job because I have children to look after‚” she said.

Likhoeli has been working for the emergency services since 2003.

On Thursday she joined a group of disgruntled Gauteng EMS employees who took their grievances to ANC headquarters at Luthuli House in Johannesburg.

She said overtime pay for the extra hours she worked could relieve her financial burden as a single parent.

“I have a child who passed matric in 2010 but I can’t afford to pay for her fees because her siblings are also in school. The money for the hours would go a long way in caring for my children‚” she said.

Gauteng EMS employees claimed they worked a total of 192 hours a month without extra pay as opposed to the 160 hours as stated by the labour law.

Another worker Zondi Motaung‚ 27‚ said she did not imagine that she would be spending 80% of her time at work when she joined EMS last year.

The group’ spokesman‚ Sfiso Dlamini‚ said they had complained about non- payment of extra working hours to Gauteng health MEC Gwen Ramokgopa and Gauteng Premier David Makhura.

“The MEC and the Premier are political heads appointed by the ANC. We want the ANC to know that they are not implementing the policies of the ANC‚” he said.

The Gauteng Department of health said emergency services were not affected by the march.

“The department has a court order in its favour relating to the staff interpretation of working hours for shift workers‚” said spokesman Prince Hamnca.

- SowetanLIVE