Thami Magubane|Published4 minutes agoSalary error: Former staff owe KZN Education R600m amid cash crunch

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education is owed nearly R600 million by former staff members who resigned or were dismissed. Members of the Education Portfolio Committee have revealed that the department is owed nearly R600 million by former staff members who resigned or were dismissed. This represents a staggering R200 million increase in this debt over the last three years.

In 2023, The Mercury reported on this debt, which at the time stood at R400 million. At that time, it was reported that part of the reason was that staff members who had resigned, retired, or been dismissed continued drawing salaries long after leaving the department without being detected by the system. Committee members stated that the problem has grown since then.

The revelations also come as the department is under severe financial strain. It has battled to pay funds for norms and standards in schools, impacting their ability to operate. Some schools have had their services cut off by municipalities because of non-payment for services.

[paywall]

It was reported that at least two schools in the Phoenix area had their services cut off earlier this year because they owed the municipality close to a million rand for services. MK Party committee member Thuthukani Madondo described the situation as unacceptable. “It cannot be that the department’s budget is in such a precarious manner, and yet there are funds that belong to the department that are sitting with the department’s former employees.” He said they were recently informed by the department that it is attempting to make some recoveries.

He is also concerned about the issue of consequence management against those who should have been preventing this. “While they said they are taking action, that action has not been clear,” said Madondo. DA committee member Sakhile Mngadi said the staff debt has risen to R600 million to date.

IFP councillor in eThekwini, Jonathan Annipen, who has had to deal with school closures in his area due to non-payment for services, said this is a serious problem. “The revelation that the Department of Education is owed approximately R600 million by former employees is deeply concerning, particularly at a time when many schools are struggling to keep their lights on and water running due to unpaid municipal accounts,” he said.

[/paywall]