Hope for aggrieved unemployed doctors: "Please go home, wait for the imminent advertisement of posts and apply"

03 April 2024

KwaZulu-Natal Health MEC Ms Nomagugu Simelane, has re-assured a group of aggrieved unemployed doctors that their plight is being attended to at the highest level of Government, which will do its best to employ as many of them as possible.

The unemployed doctors yesterday marched to the Department's provincial headquarters, at Natalia Building in Pietermaritzburg, and sat overnight, in front of the building's entrance.

They vowed not to leave the premises unless they were given letters of appointment. Regrettably, they were unable to have a meeting with the Head of Department HOD Dr Sandile Tshabalala, as per their demands, as he had been unaware of the action, and was occupied with other government commitments at the time.

However, Dr Tshabalala did meet with the doctors today, and, following a protracted three-hour meeting, some agreements were reached.

Dr Tshabalala then briefed MEC Simelane, who appealed to the doctors to return home and be patient as the matter was receiving attention.

"We don't believe that is how we should be negotiating. We should be able to stick to agreements that have been made. We do have vacancies that have not been filled. Those vacancies are in almost all our hospitals, which have the prerogative to recruit.

Unfortunately, we are unable to fill all of those posts, at the level that we would like to. That means, we are able to fill only those posts that are funded.

"The Premier has been talking to the President about this matter on our behalf. I've been talking to the Minister of Health, Dr Joe Phaahla. Our MEC for Finance Ms Peggy Nkonyeni has been speaking to the Minister for Finance, Mr Enoch Godongwana, so that we are able to get funding for those vacant posts. That process has not been completed.

"Yes, we have been provided with funds from the MTEF, but those funds are not for the hiring of unemployed doctors. Those funds were meant to foot the bill for the wage agreement that was agreed upon last year."

"This is a discussion that the National Minster of Health is continuing to have with the President. "

"With that said, I want to make a commitment that when we are able to advertise posts, which will be now in April, since the new financial year has started, all our doctors - bursary-funded or not - will be requested to apply, said MEC Simelane. The MEC re-iterated that every civil servant had to go through the proper recruitment process.

"You cannot just be given an appointment letter. You do have to go through the process. And these unemployed doctors in particular, we are requesting them to do the same. Our HoD did indicate this when he was engaging with them."

"The agreement that we have come to is that we will centralise this process at Head Office, so that there are no vacancies that are funded but not filled. But this does not give us the right to short-circuit the process. "

So, we are making a call to the unemployed doctors that, now that we'll be advertising these posts, can they please go back home and make sure that they apply. Those that do qualify will definitely be employed. And those who might not be employed, the national Government is also going to advertise. So, they are welcome to apply in other provinces as well" MEC Simelane said.

ENDS! Issued by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health