Foreign nationals wait for transport as repatriation efforts continue following anti-illegal immigration protests and intensified immigration enforcement across South Africa.
Image: Ayanda Ndamane/ ANA STudios
Thousands of migrant workers have allegedly lost their jobs, businesses are reporting growing shortages of skilled labour, and parts of the country's transport and agricultural sectors say they are beginning to feel the economic effects of South Africa's anti-illegal immigration campaign.
This comes weeks after protests demanding the removal of undocumented foreign nationals swept across the country.
What started as isolated demonstrations in May gathered momentum ahead of the self-imposed June 30 deadline set by anti-illegal immigration groups such as March and March and the Labour and Civic Organisation (LACO), which demanded undocumented foreign nationals leave South Africa.
While LACO has maintained that its campaign aims to create employment opportunities for unemployed South Africans, there is little independent evidence that the jobs vacated by foreign nationals are being filled by locals.
Recent fact-checking by Africa Check also found no evidence to support claims that removing undocumented migrants would automatically reduce unemployment or create jobs on a significant scale.
Instead, labour organisations say employers have increasingly used the anti-illegal migrant climate to dismiss workers, while businesses are now grappling with shortages of experienced labour.
The Casual Workers Advice Office (CWAO) said dismissals began before the nationwide protests reached their peak. Through its Simunye Workers Forum, the organisation documented cases involving migrant workers from Malawi, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, and Mozambique who allegedly lost their jobs or were told not to return to work.
CWAO organiser Andile Nyembezi said the organisation has now received an estimated 3000 reports of dismissals, intimidation, and workplace discrimination, up from about 1500 cases reported earlier this month.
Nyembezi said agriculture, plastics, and recycling had emerged as some of the hardest-hit sectors.
"The farming industry has been heavily affected because workers live where they work. When they lose their jobs, they also lose their homes."
He accused some employers of using immigration enforcement as an excuse to remove workers after employing them for years.
"Instead of helping workers regularise their status after benefiting from their labour, employers are simply dismissing them. If someone has worked for you for 15 years and you suddenly call the police because they don't have papers, then both the employer and employee should be held accountable."
He said the impact extended beyond workplaces, with migrant workers facing eviction from homes and communities.
"Women, including pregnant women, children, and migrant workers, have been dragged from homes and workplaces. It has been a rough period for African migrant workers."
A seasonal farm worker from De Doorns in the Western Cape, said several foreign nationals who lived and worked alongside her decided to leave the area despite having valid documentation because they feared becoming targets.
"They were scared. Even those who had the correct papers no longer felt safe staying here," she said.
She added that many of the workers had become part of the community over the years and their departure had affected both households and local businesses.
KwaZulu-Natal sugarcane farmers have warned publicly that experienced cane cutters are becoming increasingly difficult to replace, while organisations representing women farm workers have cautioned that agriculture has long depended on migrant labour.
SANTACO KwaZulu-Natal office manager Sfiso Shangase said some taxi operators had already reported lower passenger numbers.
"The departure of foreign nationals has had an economic impact on the transportation industry because some of them used our vehicles to travel to their respective destinations," he said.
Shangase added that operators were also struggling to find skilled artisans to repair vehicles.
"Many foreign nationals had these skills. There are still some available, but prices are now higher and turnaround times are longer because there are fewer people."
CODETA chairperson Nceba Enge said commuter numbers in Cape Town had remained largely unchanged but acknowledged the shortage of specialist skills.
"There were people making seat covers for taxis and others who were skilled auto electricians. We now struggle to find someone to repair our vehicles immediately," he said.
Government is meanwhile trying to increase support for South African-owned township businesses through the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition's R500 million Spaza Shop Support Fund.
The fund, launched earlier this year, is intended to help qualifying South African-owned spaza shops and convenience stores expand through grants, loans, infrastructure improvements, business training and wholesale partnerships.
By the end of May, more than 2300 applications had been approved, with support valued at almost R180 million, although officials have acknowledged that much of the funding has yet to be disbursed.
The government has argued that the programme forms part of a broader strategy to strengthen township economies while ensuring that local businesses become more competitive.
At the same time, the Department of Home Affairs and the Border Management Authority have continued nationwide operations targeting undocumented foreign nationals.
Thousands of people have been processed through the Musina Repatriation Centre and returned to neighbouring countries in recent weeks as immigration enforcement has intensified.
Authorities have repeatedly stressed that while immigration laws will continue to be enforced, communities should not take the law into their own hands or target people based on nationality.
Cape Times