ORDERLIES based at the National Psychiatric Referral Hospital have threatened to stop working overtime if they are not paid for extra hours worked over the past two months.
The workers have given the hospital administration until September 15 to address their grievances over unpaid overtime for July and August. They said should their concerns remain unresolved by the deadline, they would work straight shifts, leaving nurses to attend to patients during the night without their assistance.
The workers raised their concerns in a letter dated September 4, 2026, addressed to the hospital administrator by the shop stewards on behalf of employees at the facility.
In the letter, the workers proposed that staff currently assigned to night duty be placed on straight shifts running from 7:45am to 5pm with effect from September 15, pending the resolution of the overtime matter. Currently, the orderlies work in shifts with the day shift starting at 8am to 5pm while the night shift starts at 5pm until 8am the next day.
The workers said although government provides for overtime payments where applicable, the hospital administrator had allegedly refused to approve or sign their overtime claim forms.
They further alleged that the administrator had been signing the claim forms of selected and favoured individuals while refusing to sign those of others.
“The workers regard this practice as an act of victimisation. No reasons have, to date, been provided for the refusal to sign these claim forms,” reads part of the letter.
The orderlies also said they did not receive hardship allowances despite the hazardous nature of their work at the psychiatric facility.
They argued that physically handling violent psychiatric patients was not part of their original job description, saying their core responsibilities were primarily centred on housekeeping duties.
According to the workers, their original duties included cleaning hospital wards, floors, surfaces and ablution facilities, requisitioning cleaning materials, as well as collecting and washing laundry.
However, they said their responsibilities had expanded significantly due to the nature of patients admitted to the hospital.
They said they were now required to receive and manage violent psychiatric patients upon admission, provide security to patients around the clock, physically restrain aggressive patients, separate patients involved in fights and ensure that patients remained safely confined within the facility.
Their responsibilities also include socialising with patients as part of their rehabilitation, supervising them during the day and monitoring sleeping arrangements throughout the night.
The orderlies said they performed these duties in close collaboration with professional nurses to ensure the delivery of quality mental health services, but received no additional remuneration for the expanded role.
Also, the workers rejected allegations that they slept while on duty and reported for work intoxicated.
In their letter, they said it had come to their attention that the hospital administrator’s office had allegedly been reporting to the head office and regional office that workers slept at work and were intoxicated while on duty, and therefore did not deserve a two-shift system, which they had previously requested from the administration.
They described the allegations as baseless and unsupported by facts or evidence, saying they rejected them in the strongest terms.
The workers have since requested management to treat the matter as urgent and provide a written response so that their concerns could be addressed fairly and in an orderly manner.
When quizzed on the matter, the Ministry of Health Under Secretary (US) Anthony Masilela said he was aware that the orderlies had claimed for overtime payment. However, he said the reason for not paying them for the two months had to do with budgetary concerns.
“As a ministry, we are working on the overtime matter, and we have engaged the relevant ministries. However, this matter cannot be addressed overnight because it has budgetary implications,” said Masilela.
When asked how much was to be paid to the workers for overtime, the US said it was not easy to say because the claims were based on the various extra hours worked by the orderlies and the circumstances under which they worked.
Masilela appealed for patience from the workers while the ministry was working on the matter.
