By REGINALD KANYANE
Situation is back to normal at Taung District Hospital. This comes after healthcare workers who embarked on a week-long protest over non-payment of overtime and bonuses, Performance Management, and Development System (PMDS), and lack of Personal Protective Equipment (PPEs) brought their week-long protest to a grinding halt.
Healthcare workers’ representative, Tlotlo Maje said they agreed to return to work after their consultative engagement with the North West MEC for Health, Madoda Sambatha. However, Maje said they have submitted their ‘memorandum of demands’ and they will wait until Friday in order for the department to respond.
Maje said: “We complained about non-payment of overtime and bonuses, implementation of Performance Management and Development System (PMDS), Staff Grading and skill development among others.
“We are concerned about the department’s failure to implement a skill development program, especially at the administrative level. However, we have reached an agreement with Sambatha and we will be at our working stations until Friday.”
He further said they will continue with the protest if their demands are not addressed. Some healthcare workers alleged that the department also failed to give them PPEs even though they have been at the forefront in a fight against coronavirus.
Sambatha said some of the issues raised have to do with the responsibilities of the management. He said they have reached an agreement with the disgruntled workers and will ensure that the department addressed their grievances.
“Everything that does not need money is going to be resolved. Every problem that they have and it needs money, we will check whether we do have money to resolve it. However, what we cannot do is to force healthcare workers to be out of their work station predominantly on failures of the administrative components in health.
“There are issues that we need to be investigated in terms of qualifications and the responsibilities of the management. I have agreed with them that between Monday and Friday, they are going to get all their issues in an action plan. So, if they are not happy with the action plan, they can have an engagement with me in terms of it,” he said.
On the issue of PPEs, Sambatha said each unit should have a proper PPE. He said this is the responsibility of the occupational health and safety committee and management to ensure that PPEs are available.
The Guardian 