Govt lacking urgency in resolving public healthcare sector unemployment crisis - HAITU
The union is urging President Cyril Ramaphosa to address South Africa’s deteriorating healthcare system and increase spending in public health facilities during his State of the Nation Address.
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JOHANNESBURG - The Health and Allied Workers Indaba Trade Union (HAITU) has accused government of showing a lack of urgency in resolving the current unemployment crisis in the public healthcare sector.
HAITU is urging President Cyril Ramaphosa to address the deteriorating state of healthcare in the country and increase spending in public health facilities during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Thursday evening.
This came as Minister of Health Joe Phaahla announced in the week that there was no budget to hire medical graduates.
More than 800 qualified doctors remain unemployed, despite the staff shortages at public hospitals.
General secretary Lerato Mthunzi said Ramaphosa should bail out the health sector instead of squandering funds on ailing state-owned entities (SOEs) like Eskom and Transnet.
"If we can fix our healthcare system in this country, it will correct a lot of social ills that come as a result of a failing healthcare system," he said.
"Those doctors must be employed - the Department of Health needs them, [and] our healthcare facilities need them."