Workers at a Soweto home for the aged have gone months without pay — TimesLIVE
Employees of the Soweto Home for the Aged in Soweto, South Africa, said they have not received salaries since April. According to them, this has left the facility short-staffed to care for residents. At the same time, the Gauteng provincial Department of Social Development said it had completed procedures to provide the institution with funding, TimesLIVE reports.
Two employees who wished to remain anonymous told the outlet that the situation had not changed after a visit by Gauteng’s Member of the Executive Council responsible for social development, Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko. It took place about two weeks before the publication. One employee, a professional nurse, said staff had received no information from the department after the visit.
The funding agreement is to be signed on September 4
Nkomo-Ralehoko’s spokesperson, Motsamai Motlhaolwa, said the facility had not received funding this year because its application was incomplete. According to him, after meeting with the institution’s management, the official instructed that it be provided with financial assistance given the situation of the residents.
The department completed the required verification procedures and planned to sign a service level agreement with the home on September 4, 2026. The subsidy payment, according to the spokesperson, is to be made in line with the department’s standard procedures after the agreement is signed.
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Staff shortages affect care
The nurse said that sometimes only two caregivers report for a shift. They have to prepare food, feed and bathe residents of the frail care ward, including people with dementia, paralysis, mobility impairments and wheelchair users.
According to her, the shortage of nurses also complicates residents’ trips to hospitals and clinics for specialized treatment because there is no one to accompany them. She added that at night there are sometimes no employees able to provide assistance.
The employee said that because of unpaid wages, some staff members do not even have money for transport to work. She also expressed concern about the quantity and quality of food at the facility and claimed that residents had died due to insufficient nutrition. TimesLIVE noted that it was unable to independently confirm a link between the deaths and conditions at the home.
Another employee questioned the reasons for the lack of funding. The outlet also reported that delays in subsidies affect other Gauteng nonprofit organizations that provide social services.
