Xenophobia caused by 'useless' locals

The xenophobia is largely because foreigners find work but locals don't. Paddy Hartdegen thinks it's because locals are useless.

Xenophobia is thriving in Alexandra, Atteridgeville, Mamelodi, Reiger Park, Malvern, Shoshanguvwe and other placed as aggrieved South Africans try to banish productive immigrant workers from 'their' townships.

South Africans claim that Zimbabwean and Mozambican immigrants – legal or illegal – are taking 'their' jobs, stealing 'their' women, and living on 'their' land.

The situation in Johannesburg during the past week has left a number of people dead and many, many more injured, homeless and helpless. Even their meager goods have been stolen and redistributed among the marauding louts.

The situation has been sufficiently tense for a number of talk radio stations to devote considerable airtime to the subject. Online news reports and the daily press told horrific tales of brutality meted out against the foreigners.

The interesting thing, though, was the number of building contractors – admittedly from smaller firms – who phoned the talk radio stations in the past week to express their views. I listened to at least six calls, maybe more, from contractors who said categorically "all the wet trades on buildings under construction are done by foreigners".

One particular caller claimed that most of the bricklaying, carpentry, plastering, tiling and, in some cases, even the plumbing was being done by foreigners. Not because these people will work for less money but because they're trained, skilled, eager and able to do the work. South African workers are not. Or at least not enough of them are skilled in these trades.

These comments didn't really surprise me. After all, training in South Africa's building industry has gone from being world class to pretty much non-existent. Ever since the government created the Construction Seta (Sector Education and Training Authority) effective on-the-job training has all but ground to a halt.

Let's examine some of the facts: the average age of an artisan in the building industry today is 54. Theoretically they have just six more years to work. Last year, there was just one carpentry apprentice registered in the whole of Gauteng and two in the whole country. There were no indentured bricklayers, painters, plasterers, tilers or electricians whatsoever.

As a result, the building industry, frustrated as it is by its critical shortages of skills, has been forced to start its own private training initiatives. Companies like Form-Scaff, BPB Gypsum and LaFarge are training as many people as they can get.

Furthermore, the building industry in the Western Cape has re-introduced apprenticeships on a pilot basis offering to equip youngsters who want to learn and be trained with a recognised qualification.

Even the major construction companies such as Murray & Roberts are running mentoring programmes and training courses for their site workers on site. Why are these initiatives underway? Basically because our formal training systems have failed.

Ironically, those workers who are capable and trained – such as the Mozambicans and Zimbabweans – are gratefully accepting all the work they can get. They're employed because they are skilled and they can do the work. Unlike those louts and lay-abouts causing the trouble!

Those louts that say foreigners are 'stealing their jobs' aren't able to do the job. They're not prepared to get a qualification. Or to accept a job as an apprentice either. So you tell me, who's stealing their jobs? They can't and won't do the job.

For these louts, it seem, the answer is to go out and beat-up a skilled worker. What kind of cock-eyed reasoning is that?

I recently spent some time chatting to various training officers for a story on apprenticeships and one of the people I spoke to told me that he finds it most odd that South Africans will start a course and drop out of it as soon as they've received their first couple of pay packets.

He says that the young men are the worst. They're there to satisfy their short-term lust for money. Once satisfied, they quit. He says, too, that South African women are considerably more reliable and more committed to getting a qualification. They seem thrive on being taught and on acquiring a skill.

Perhaps the only solution is to re-introduce compulsory military training for all school-leaving males. This'll get the lay-abouts off our streets and give us a productive and cheap a labour force that's making some small contribution to our society for the meals they eat each day. It also gives them a little discretionary income, no matter how little, to spend as they choose.

Let me express my utter contempt for these xenophobic louts who steal goods that have been bought through the sweat of an honest day's work.

While we're about it, let's also accept that South Africa's current training programmes – at least in the construction sector where artisans are so badly needed – are a comprehensive failure.

Right now there seems to be enough evidence to disband the Construction Seta entirely and hand all training back to skilled journeymen who are working on site. Back to the technikons who know how to teach. Back to the testers who now how to adjudicate.

These people and institutions have produced quality workers in the past and certainly would do so in the future if given half a chance. And practical training such as this would cost a fraction of the money that's currently being wasted on supporting sector education and training authorities.

*Hartdegen will be writing a regular column for Property24.com. Contact him at paddyhar@telkomsa.net.

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Thank you for your column. I must say that I agree with you 100%. Well done. - Sharlene Smith

Paddy Hartdegen should rather try and preach reconciliation and calm instead of insulting, as this will only add fuel to an already uncontrollable fire. - Adrian Osborne

I couldn't agree more, as an Eng Foreman for Impala Platinum Holdings Limited (Marula Mine, Limpopo), I struggle to get good quality artisans. I've been running short on my complement for the past five years and I've never been able to fill it. The guys that come for interviews are either "fake" or poorly trained to such an extent that I cannot waste Impala's money on them. I recently tried to employ Zimbabwean electricians but because of their work permits and/or qualification papers not being valid and not recognised by RSA, I had to send them away. – R.R. Stofberg

I believe it's easy to judge and pretend you know it all hence you've never been in the situation yourself. Well I would agree with the writer of this article when he says our locals are useless but his comments don't tell both sides of the story. Fine to a certain extent well some members in our community are lazy but this xenophobia has far more connotations that it meets the eye. Firstly it is said that South Africa has about 1million foreign nationals and out of that number it is estimated that a large number of them are here unlawfully. Do other people consider the fact that most of these illegitimate foreigners end up being eligible to acquire South Africa's social security funds and the government has no control over this? Foreigners are flocking in from all corners of our country and the government seems to be loosing control over this. Our own government has made empty promises to people over and over, people leave in poverty and growth and development seems to be a slow process in our country because the state is fueled with self-centered individuals who only concentrates on building a better image for themselves and they forget about the needs of the people. After all crime is not the answer but they way I see it, people are frustrated and the only way to show their frustrations is the attacks on these so called poor innocent foreigners and our own Government is to blame on this. Take home affairs for an example, that department is fueled by corrupt officials who in most cases are the ones responsible for organizing fraudulent documents for foreigners and this is Government. - Sibosiso Mthimkulu

Couldn't agree with you more, Paddy. And 'louts' is too nice a description for those losers causing
all this ruckus. Their mentality is shocking! And its even more shocking that the attacks that
which started in Alexandra a week ago has spread to Diepsloot, Hillbrow, Jeppe, Cleveland, Tembisa
and central Johannesburg. Cape Town is showing signs of xenophic attacks starting there
as well.

These losers have no skills, no brains and even less decency. The one thing you can applaude them
on is that they can all congregate quickly enough to riot, with pangas, shamboks and toi-toi-ing in the streets.A bunch of marauding, toi-toi-ing sheep! Why the police put up with their idiotic crap is beyondme! They serve no purpose, are hell-bent on causing more damage and should either be locked
up or bloody shot! The poor people that are suffering at their hands are the one's that DO do
an honest day's work! - Tasneem Shaik

I could not agree more with you. I lived in JHB for 7 years and battled to find an efficient gardener. The local workers demanded more for less hours. I than found a gardener from Mozambique, a fantastic guy. I gave him his tasks at R100.00 per day and 1 day a week. He cleaned my garden within 3 hours and 1000 sqm of grass. After many recommendations his cousin started working for him and they now work 6 days a week, full days on the Eastrand in JHB.

I am now in Cape Town for 2 years and had 4 gardeners already. Sorry to say, but some of the locals do not want to work. It's a pity that it had to lead to these senseless killings and actions from our local people. - AP

Paddy's generalisation that "locals are useless" is very concerning. There are millions of hardworking South Africans; some of them who come from rural and impoverished areas; and only see their families a few times a year. Yes, there are some people; who do not want to work - for whatever reason - that's normal in any society. But that does not imply that most South Africans are lazy, which is what his article implies at face value.

Should we marginalise those young men who "don't want to work" or should we find a root cause of this percieved laziness. It is easy to criticize if you have no clue what growing up poor (and in most cases with no parents to guide you - because they don't live with you on a full time basis (being domestic workers or migrant workers living in hostels)) to your psyche and self esteem. The long term solution is not to marginalise South African youth because, believe it or not, they will find alternative (unsavoury) ways of making money and it will be OUR problem - all of us.

I agree with reintroducing compulsory basic military training for all school-leaving youngsters - male and female as a potential solution. This will not only get the youngsters out of the streets, but the training can also include programmes designed to instill values and being a good citizen; as well as basic skilling (building, carpentry, etc.) to help those kids who cannot afford tertiary education to find employment post the basic militrary training.

Employing foreigners instead of locals (because they are unskilled and useless) can only be a short term solution. Marginalising locals because of this perception will only fuel anger and hatred; and will manifest itself to what we have been witnessing.

Charity begins at home. It is hypocrisy to look after your neighbour when you have not sorted out your problems in your own backyard.- Nonhlanhla Mtshali

I agree with most of your comments with regards to the failure of the SETA's to produce skilled workers. I however do not agree with your solution, the use of Universities of Technology (there are no Technikons in South Africa anymore).

Firstly, the fees in any university of technology are just prohibitive for the intake that will have to be enrolled in order to close the skills gab in SA quick enough. Even if you redirect the funds that are currently being channelled into the SETA's. We also have to consider the wages/ salaries being paid for people qualified in these fields (Brick Layer, etc). Why would I as a young person burden myself with a debt of well over R60000 just to earn a mere R6000-R8000 gross monthly salary. The debt I speak about will be incurred when I enrol to any university and have to receive assistance from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme for the duration of my study years. The construction industry has to start making available enough bursary money to get the numbers they require and have to look at how they can make the salaries more attractive to the many young people who want work but would rather remain unemployed than being given the slave salaries/ wages that are being paid to the artisan community currently.

Companies have to be taken to task for abusing foreign nationals. Most companies in the quest for greater profits have been reducing their cost structure. The quickest way is always to cut on you work force costs. Yes, there are skilled individual foreigners who need to get the job well before their South African counterparts. But why do companies then reduce the amount they pay to these foreigners relative to the offer they would have given to a South African..? It's simple; the companies are using the varnability of the foreign nationals to their advantage AND thus drive down industry pay for artisans. The problem this industry finds it's self in today is similar to the position faced by the education sector a few years ago when the industry completely lost it's shine in society and couldn't attract enough young people. Correctly rewarding skilled people is always the best start in trying to attract more people to join an industry.

I admit fully that businesses are there to make money for their owners and not act as charity organisations but do we want to have the same working conditions in South Africa as experienced in South East Asian countries. The answer is a No. The workers have struggle hard and long enough.

The violence against foreign Nationals has to be condemned in the strongest possible terms but we must also correct the economic structural issues that give rise to the wrong perceptions that people have against these nationals.

Why would I as young person want to enter the industry if 60% of my income will be gobbled by transport and food expenses before I even pay for my study debt.

I ask that you spend some time with a lowly paid individual just so that you familiarise yourself with their daily struggles before you go around calling people names. It is a frustrating life for all concerned. The family has hopes of moving out of poverty and you can't help them with your current pay package and this creates a circles of broken dreams and has the potential of demoralising you completely. Lets stop speaking about issues from the text book point of view and please don't give me the standard white man's response that you've spoken to some low income earning people and thus you understand their struggles. Live with the people and not only read about their struggles on books or some study reports. - Mfundo A. Nesi

I am a qualified artisan working in the middle east at the moment. One of the problems facing artisans, and one of the reasons that so few people want to become artisans, is that we are looked down upon in South Africa. We are seen as the dirty people. Go and ask school leavers how many of them want to work in overalls? I'll bet it is very few. How much money we make becomes irrelevant to the status we have. At banks "technicians" get better treatment, even though most of them are just young people with a meaningless IT qualification. I once met a person that started an apprenticeship and left it for a more "glamorous" IT job. He is being paid a third of what I did when I was in South Africa, but, as he said "at least I don't have to get dirty". Until the perceived status of artisans changes in South Africa, and we have more people that want to become artisans, we will have to rely on skilled immigrants. And as long as we have a need for them they will keep coming. And it's not just in the construction arena that there is a shortage of skilled artisans, it's everywhere. And South Africa will start to see the effects of it soon. - Paul Ganter

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