The City of Johannesburg started issuing appointment letters on Friday, 5 July to those beneficiaries of the security guard insourcing programme for which the verification process has been concluded.
This will conclude the second phase of insourcing the security force. The employment of the security guards will therefore be effective as of 1 October.
The Executive Mayor of Johannesburg, Herman Mashaba reassured the guards that their current contracts will continue with their current employers on a month-to-month basis until 1 October.
“In addition, security guards who joined the City after the initial announcement of insourcing in May 2017 also will be taken into account with a separate application process. The City has identified the need for additional security capacity and will open an ordinary recruitment process for more security officers. Those already working within the City will be given preference,” Mashaba said.
Mashaba appealed to the affected beneficiaries to be patient as the City is ensuring that a fair process is being followed and that those deserving will indeed benefit from this process.
“As a caring and conscientious government, the City is committed to continuously engaging the affected security guards about the progress of the insourcing programme,” Mashaba said.
The City is still in the process of acquiring the necessary uniforms and other personal protective equipment for security guards when they commence work on 1 October.
According to the statement, the City saw over R700 million being paid annually to politically connected security companies. The City said it is deeply committed to insourcing, which represents a departure from the past practices. Each security guard earned under R4 000 per month, while the security companies received more than R12 000 per month per security guard.
Mashaba said, “What the City has achieved is to redirect the lucrative profit margins of these politically connected companies, and direct them to the nearly 4 000 families in the City of Johannesburg.”
