Hundreds of aggrieved Environment Health Practitioners (EHPs) who are presently unemployed descended upon the Pretoria CBD on Monday morning to demand immediate employment from the Department of Health.
They demand urgent implementation of the resolution to employ at least 1000 Environmental Health Practitioners so as to address the public health and food safety crisis in the country.
They revealed that currently, one EHP serves about 3500 people in the country while according to established norms, one EHP should serve only 1000 people.
They decried the fact that presently there is only 1 712 EHPs employed countrywide and that there is a shortage of 6 203 EHPs.
The EHPs also delivered a memorandum of grievances at the Health Professionals Council of South Africa (HPCSA) demanding an urgent reinstatement of EHPs who have been suspended from the HPCSA due to incapability to pay annual fees to HPCSA.
They insist that the immediate lifting of the said suspensions will allow the presently-suspended EHPs to form part of the pool of applicants vying for available posts and vacancies that have been advertised.
The marching EHPs said they failed to pay the required annual fees due to lack of funds as they are unemployed, but be that as it may, they still want to retain their active membership of HPCSA.
The incensed EHPs also marched to the headquarters of the Department of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) and department of health where they demanded follow-up regarding the process of employing 520 EHPs as stated by the Minister in 2024.
They opine that the aforementioned employment process is crucial in addressing the ongoing rising foodborne illnesses and deaths; that there are many qualified EHPs who are ready to serve and protect the public from preventable infections and illnesses.
They urged department to seek funding from the National Treasury to fund the employment of the 520 EHPs as promised.
The unemployed EHPs, most of whom are relatively young, held placards aloft, stomped their feet vigorously, sang their lungs out, danced and made it clear that their demands are not negotiable but should be adhered to with immediate effect.
Some of them were clad in the white overcoats usually worn by medical doctors at hospitals.
Sindiswa Mdima from KwaZulu Natal who is a member of Advocacy for Environmental Health Practitioners, told Tshwane Talks that she and members of her organisation cane all the way from KZN to stage a peaceful march to demonstrate their solidarity with unemployed EHPs and for their voice to be heard.
“Currently there is about 600 EHPs who are unemployed in the country and after the outbreak of foodborne diseases, COGTA announced that it would be employing 520 EHPs, but that has not been implemented,” she said.
“As EHPs we specialise in food safety and we perform nine core functions and our slogan is prevention is better than cure,” enthused Mdima.
“We are the first line of defence in the fight against foodborne diseases and we therefore enforce compliance among businesses who sell foodstuffs and as EHPs we are here to tell the government that we are here; the country is suffering; we are unemployed; we are ready to serve and protect the country from foodborne diseases,” she said.
“Today is a blue Monday for unemployed EHPs and also a cry from us for dignity and recognition, and as we are qualified we keep on asking ourselves as to why the government is not employing us,” said unemployed EHPs Nthokoza Africander.
“After the outbreak of foodborne diseases, the only intervention that the government came up with was to force spaza shops to be registered, but the question is who is going to monitor those spaza shops to make sure that they comply with health regulations?”asked Wa Afrika.
He urged journalists to keep on reporting about their plight as unemployed EHPs.
Petunia Sikhisazane who is also an unemployed EHPs said their unemployment status affects them very badly because they are unable to meet their personal daily needs and that this is an indication that the government is not protecting them as EHPs.
Sikhisazane said the unemployment of EHPs also affects the community at large because they (the community) need the protection of EHPs.
“We are tired, kids are dying almost on a daily basis yet we are here as qualified EHPs but we can’t help our communities, so we want to know as to why the government is not hiring us,” she fumed.
Deputy Acting Director General for corporate services at COGTA Hazel Masiza received the memorandum on behalf of Minister Hlabisa.
She said Minister Hlabisa is aware about the plight of the unemployed EHPs; that he is working hand in hand with the Minister of Health Aaron Motsoaledi to tackle the issue and that there is a process that is underway to make sure that Minister Hlabisa fulfills his promise to employ the said unemployed EHPs.
Masiza couldn’t say as to when the Department of COGTA would respond to the demands of the unemployed EHPs.
Copy of Memorandums: