Bianca du Plessis
The employment of undocumented or illegal immigrants came under the spotlight after 29 construction workers, who are classified as undocumented foreign nationals, and a sub-contractor were arrested at the site of an upscale development project in Hermanus last week.
Officials of the Department of Home Affairs, Hermanus police and Overstrand Law Enforcement descended on the busy construction site in Marine Drive where a luxurious residential complex offering expansive seaviews is being constructed.
Thulani Mavuso, spokesperson for the Department of Home Affairs, confirmed the department had acted on information it had received regarding the alleged employment of undocumented foreign nationals.
“We arrested 29 undocumented foreign nationals who were labourers and one South African employer, bringing the total of arrests to 30,” he stated.
Some of these illegal immigrants, who hail from Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Malawia, said Mavuso, had been in South Africa for approximately three years. He added that none of the men had indicated in interviews they were married.
The men appeared in the Hermanus Magistrates’ Court on charges relating to the contravention of the Immigration Act and now face deportation to their respective home countries.
Mavuso explained: “Detained undocumented foreign nationals are confirmed for deportation in court. The administrative process which follows includes transportation of detainees to the Lindela Repatriation Centre in Gauteng, from where deportation to countries of origin takes place.”
Col Gustav Tamboer, commander of the Hermanus Police Station, confirmed the suspects, ranging from 19 to 48 years, and their employer were scheduled to appear in the Hermanus Magistrates’ Court on Thursday 7 August.
The property-development company Horizon Capital reported that a 48-hour deadline had been set for an audit of the immigration status of all labourers employed at The Mira site.
David Sedgwick, Group Managing Director of Horizon Capital, pointed out that the developer is not responsible for or involved in the appointment of labourers, and that this falls under the duties and responsibilities of the main contractor, in this case HFO Construction.
He explained: “In the matter of the development known as The Mira, Horizon Capital represents the developer who brings various contractors and sub-contractors together that are fully and legally responsible for their own labour decisions. We, of course, impose standards on them, and they undertake legally to comply with the law, but Horizon Capital is not an employer of any labour on the building and construction site itself.
“Horizon Capital has appointed and contracted a main contractor, HFO, which in turn has its own sub-contractors. The main contractor is accountable to the development company and must comply with the legal obligations this entails, as must its sub-contractors accountable to it.
“The JBCC contract that the development company has with the main contractor requires it to comply fully with all laws and regulations of the Republic of South Africa. Horizon Capital and the development companies it manages has already immediately begun to look into this question of labour practices. We have issued a directive to the main contractor to undertake a full audit of the immigration status of all personnel employed by them, and any sub-contractors they have engaged on site. We have given them 48 hours to complete and report to us.”
Sedgwick added that Horizon Capital, which has numerous projects at various stages in Hermanus, is dedicated to supporting local economic growth and development and employing local professionals, sub-contractors and businesses.
In response to enquiries about the matter, HFO stated: “We confirm that it has been reported that law enforcement conducted arrests at the site, involving predominantly subcontracted service providers and what we believe to be three casual labourers. These were retained to provide outsourced services to the contracted project. Initial information suggests that those detained were not provided an opportunity to present documentation or verify their legal status. We are engaging with subcontractors in reviewing their recruitment and documentation processes implemented to understand how this situation arose. Notably the majority of arrests made were in respect of independent contractors engaged in civil works in front of the site, who were not employed by HFO Construction.”
The main contractor further stated that a “Junior Site Supervisor was detained despite being a South African citizen and having no direct association with the subcontractors involved.”
Preliminary findings, said a spokesperson for HFO, indicate that subcontractors may have replaced previously verified personnel with undocumented individuals.
“While our company maintains a strict compliance mandate, oversight gaps in subcontractor management may have enabled such lapses,” the spokesperson said.
The company admitted that although it upholds strict adherence to South African labour and immigration statutes, the incident underscored a need to bolster oversight of compliance, adding it had launched an internal investigation into the matter and are cooperating with authorities.
HFO stated that to prevent similar future infractions it would implement enhanced pre-engagement documentation with subcontractors, stricter compliance clauses and mandatory documentation declarations by all service providers, including casual labour. “We do not anticipate notable disruption to the project timeline, as the majority of site staff are fully confirmed as compliant. Our long-standing industry reputation and focus on customer satisfaction reflect our commitment to operational integrity and ethical conduct.”
