Foreign
language interpreters contracted to the Department of Justice for a serious housebreaking trial in the Western Cape High Court have refused to work, accusing that their earnings are completely deficient.
The interpreters earn 300 ZAR (approximately 44.55 USD) a day and, after tax is deducted, take home only 235 ZAR.
The two interpreters, Banadele Samuel and Walter Joseclin de Claudio, have been complaining for months, and have written to the
court manager. Samuel is an
Igbo interpreter (Igbo language is a native language of the Igbo people, an ethnic group primarily located in southeastern Nigeria. There are approximately 20 million speakers) and De Claudio is a
Portuguese interpreter.
Hishaam Mohamed, head of the provincial justice department, said that the interpreters concerned had received a contract from the department, the terms of which they had agreed to. It means that they agreed to the rate of 300 ZAR a day and that they were cognizant of the fact that they would not get additional benefits.
