Durban - Msunduzi Municipality workers who were caught napping on top of graves while on duty in one of the cemeteries in Pietermaritzburg have been given written warning letters.
This was confirmed by City manager Lulamile Ngcobo to The Mercury, who said the episode had tarnished the city’s image.
“Those workers are from the Expanded Public Works Programme, and their conduct attracted unnecessary attention to the city, and there were even complaints that the act amounted to blasphemy on the dead,” he said.
He pointed out that the city’s management had been lenient towards the staff members because they had shown remorse for their action and understood the impact that this had caused.
“That issue really embarrassed us and exposed some of the gaps in our operations which we are now attending to,” he continued.
Ngcobo said while the incident of sleeping workers had embarrassed the municipality, such incidents of workers sleeping on the roadside and other sites were not limited to the KwaZulu-Natal capital.
“You find this in major towns where people prepare food under the shade while on duty, the municipality’s experience simply highlighted what is already out there,” the city manager insisted.
Ngcobo stressed that the incident also highlighted how workers for a long period carried out their tasks without proper supervision. This, he pointed out, had seen the management embarking on a series of initiatives including workshops and awards events, aimed at motivating staff to do what they are paid for.