KZN ANCYL Wants Government To Hire Unemployed, Retired Teachers To Assist At Schools

The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) in KwaZulu-Natal said it wanted government to hire unemployed and retired teachers before some classes resume next month.

Provincial secretary Thanduxolo Sabelo said they also wanted Extended Public Works Progamme (EPWP) workers who were sitting at home because of current lockdown restrictions to be hired by the Department of Basic Education and serve as social distancing monitors.

The league has also called on the national government to urgently grant the KZN education department the R1 billion it said it needed to ensure safety in schools for the rest of the academic year.

KZN has the highest number of pupils in the country and the ANCYL said the public education system could not afford to have any delays.

Sabelo said to ensure safety and buy-in from stakeholders in the education sector, schools must be open for longer hours and teachers must work in a shift system.

“There must be a fixed system where there are morning classes and afternoon classes.”

Sabelo said the government had enough resources to implement their proposals, including funding to hire unemployed and retired teachers.

“We are saying the department must recruit more people. The people are already there, they are unemployed, and the department can do it. If they can set aside R500 billion, then they can definitely set aside for the education of this country.”

At the weekend, the provincial education department announced that it would be able to resume teaching and learning next month.

EWN