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Live-in or take leave: Carers unhappy with Durban facility’s ultimatum
Staff at an old age home in Durban have been put between a rock and a hard place by the decision to only allow live-in carers to work during lockdown
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Carers at the Natal Settlers Memorial Homes in Umbilo, Durban, say they have been forced to choose between living in at the facility during the lockdown or taking leave.
The home could have issued permits to the workers, but the home’s executive committee was unhappy with the risks this posed.
Ultimatum leaves healthcare workers to make a tough choice
A representative for a group of workers says they were given short notice and forced to take annual leave if they could not stay at the home.
Many of the staff members of the home have families who depend on them according to their representative. The home itself has acknowledged that its staff are unhappy with the decision but have defended their choice, which they believe is best for the frail and elderly people who live there.
Allegations of abuse of labour
A representative of the workers claimed the shift rosters drawn up for the lockdown did not offer staff adequate rest.
“From the inside information we received and the roster we saw, they are working 24 hours a day, without rest or days off.”
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Natal Settlers Executive Committee member Warwick Chapman denied workers were being forced to work 24/7. Chapman says that schedules have been adjusted and the focus shifted to essential tasks.
“These circumstances have placed staff and management under pressure. On top of that, staff who are on paid leave are exceptionally unhappy with the circumstances,” said Chapman in an interview with the Daily News.
“We have 83 staff on duty during the lockdown. We usually have 112 during normal operations. It is important to note that we always have separate day shift and night shift teams,” he said.
Durban’s healthcare workers on the front line
Durban has become the epicentre of the ongoing health crisis in KwaZulu-Natal forcing Premier Sihle Zikalala to enforce a stricter lockdown in the city.
Healthcare workers in KwaZulu-Natal have been on the frontline of the fight against COVID-19 and the cost is beginning to tell.
There have been 80 cases of COVID-19 among health workers and patients at Durban hospitals St Augustine’s and Kingsway.
It has been further alleged that at least four nurses at Addington Hospital have tested positive for the virus.
The provincial health department is also concerned that COVID-19-positive health workers would have to be admitted and cared for by other health workers, leaving a gap on the floor.
