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- Disgruntled security guards say they will not leave until their demands are met.
- The group had been camping outside the health department offices after their contracts were terminated.
- The health department obtained a court interdict to remove the protesting guards from outside their office.
Angry security guards who have been protesting outside the offices of the Gauteng Department of Health in Johannesburg following the termination of their month-to-month contracts, say they will continue the fight to get their jobs back.
The group of protesters raised eyebrows last week when female private security guards stripped naked while gathering in front of the building.
The health department has obtained a court interdict to remove the protesting guards from camping outside its premises.
Department spokesperson Motalatale Modiba said the interdict prohibited protesters from blocking entrances in an attempt to force the department to hire them.
It’s been two weeks since the security guards left their homes to camp outside the department, hoping their demands would be met, but to no avail.
WATCH | Grievances laid bare: security guards strip naked in protest outside Gauteng health department
The disgruntled group said on Thursday that they would continue to sleep outside the health department offices.
Speaking on behalf of the guards, the South African Cleaners, Security and Allied Workers Union (Sacsaawu) secretary-general Diphapang Potsane said, even with the court interdict in place, they intended to stay until their demands were met.
"We will be camping until they attend to our demands, no matter what," he said.
"We want our provident funds, UIF, and medical aid back because they were being deducted from our salaries but were not paid into the fund."
Jabulani Phiri, one of the protesting guards, said: "We sleep on the floor, and it's cold. We don't have toilets. We consume less when we eat or drink water because we don't have a legit backup if we need the restroom."
He added that, over the past two weeks, they hadn't been able to bath properly, wash their faces, or brush their teeth.
Phiri said their health had deteriorated because of these conditions, adding that he had fallen ill, and that his recovery was slow because of sleeping outdoors.
Nomsa Mosehle said that participating in the naked protest had not been easy, but that it was a desperate measure.
She said:
She added that the only thing that would make them end the protest and go back home again was getting their jobs back.
Portia Mothibi said she would continue to protest for as long as was necessary.
"We will remain here until they answer us, and it doesn't matter how long it takes," she added.
However, Modiba said the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department needed to enforce the City's by-laws against the group camping outside the department's premises.
