Tourism industry violates workers' rights

By Madibeng Kgwete: posted on 11 August 2008

We have less than 24 months before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa; and the local tourism industry will undoubtedly be the biggest beneficiary of this historic event. Hotels, guest houses, bed-and-breakfast outlets and travel agencies will pocket the biggest share of the profit generated through the event.

Speaking in Germany during a ceremony to unveil the emblem for South Africa's 2010 FIFA World Cup in July 2006, President Thabo Mbeki invited “football fans of the world to journey to a tourist paradise across our magnificent continent of Africa”, adding that the World Cup “will stand out as a unique event that celebrates Africa in all its magnificent splendour, richness, vibrancy, diversity and glory.”

As a witness to tireless efforts by ordinary South Africans to ensure that the World Cup succeeds, I have no doubt about our ability as a country to host a successful event come 2010. South African workers around the country work literally around the clock to ensure that our stadiums, roads, water, electricity systems meet FIFA and the world’s high expectations.

My biggest fear, however, is that some in the tourism industry will use the historic 2010 FIFA World Cup as a get-rich-quick scheme at the expense of their hard-working employees, most of whom are poor African women. To these exploited workers, 2010 will mean longer working hours because of the high volume of tourists. At the end of it all, they will remain poor whilst their employers become richer.

During my recent stay at a popular resort in the North West province, I witnessed some shameful exploitation of workers in the tourism industry. One worker told me how he works from 6am till 10pm everyday, six days a week. That is a 16-hour working day – two times the average 8-hour day! For this, he gets a R1500 per month salary. No medical aid; no pension fund; no overtime compensation, no trade union affiliation.

Under these circumstances, government needs to intervene by conducting a massive audit to check compliance to labour law in the tourism industry. In our hotels, guest houses, lodges and other tourism outlets, the audit will uncover unprecedented violations of the rights of South African workers. Government would then blackmail wrongdoers so that they do not benefit from the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

As a country, we cannot continue to pride ourselves of being “a tourist paradise” whilst this paradise triumphs at the expense of our fellow poor South Africans.