Joburg refuse collection at a standstill as workers block Pikitup depots

A police van parked outside the gates to the Pikitup Avalon depot which were closed due to the blockade. Photos: Ihsaan Haffejee

• Rubbish collection has been disrupted across many parts of Johannesburg after contract workers blocked access to six Pikitup depots.
• The protesting workers are demanding permanent employment, saying they have worked as contractors for years while earning far less than permanent staff.
• They say they have repeatedly been promised permanent positions.
• The latest protest follows a series of delays and disruptions to refuse collection services.

“All we are asking for is the same rights as full-time workers,” said Funokwakha Ndobe, a contract worker at Pikitup’s Marlboro depot in Johannesburg. “They have been promising us jobs for seven years, and we are tired of these promises. That is why we are protesting.’

Contract workers have blocked access to several Pikitup depots, bringing refuse collection to a standstill in large parts of the city.

The disruption, entering its second month, is affecting depots servicing parts of Alexandra, Sandton, Randburg, Fourways, Bryanston, Roodepoort, Northcliff, Melville, Auckland Park, Soweto, Orange Farm and surrounding areas.

Pikitup spokesperson Anthony Selepe said permanent Pikitup employees are not on strike. But the blockades have prevented vehicles and permanent employees from leaving the depots to provide scheduled services, he said.

The protesters say they will not leave until they are permanently employed by Pikitup instead of working through labour brokers and contractors. They say they have repeatedly been promised permanent jobs only for recruitment processes to be delayed or abandoned.

Workers GroundUp spoke to say they earn about R4,000 a month while performing the same physically demanding work as permanent employees, who earn up to five times this with benefits such as medical aid.

“The job we’re doing requires medical aid,” said one worker at the Avalon depot, where 46 workers have organised independently of any union.

“We’re tired,” another worker said. “We won’t open those gates until we receive the documents showing we’re signing permanent contracts.”

Workers outside the gates to the Pikitup Avalon depot in the south of Johannesburg.

Ndobe said that casual employees had been seeking permanent jobs with benefits since 2019.

He said workers have proposed being employed directly by Pikitup on a casual basis until permanent posts become available. He said many had not been paid this month.

According to the workers we spoke to at various depots, Pikitup promised hundreds of casual workers permanent positions by late 2025. The appointments were then postponed until 15 January 2026 before being delayed again, triggering a wave of strikes later that month.

At the time, Pikitup managing director Bukelwa Njingolo said general worker posts advertised in 2024 had to be re-advertised after an internal audit and legal review identified “flaws” in the recruitment process.

Pikitup has said that appointments must follow legal and internal recruitment processes.

Workers say that they have repeatedly had to apply for the same jobs.

Ndobe said workers completed interviews, vetting and medical examinations during the 2024 recruitment process, but were told later that the posts had “lapsed”.

Another undertaking that permanent appointments would be finalised by 1 July also failed to materialise, prompting the current strike action.

Asked to comment, Selepe said hiring must follow due process and Pikitup must first meet all its financial obligations.

The current disruption is the latest in a series of setbacks for Johannesburg’s refuse collection service. Earlier disruptions caused by protest action and reduced landfill capacity slowed the turnaround time for refuse trucks. In July, refuse collection was disrupted when Pikitup failed to pay contracted truck operators, which meant that their employees in turn did not receive their wages.

Over R1.3-billion was owed to contractors in July, Pikitup has said.

Pikitup says it is working with law enforcement agencies to restore operations at the depots. But the protesting workers insist they will not end the blockade until they receive written confirmation of permanent employment.

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