The City of Cape Town has warned against a new employment scam by an individual purporting to be an official recruiter from the Western Cape Department of Health, who is alleged to be offering community members jobs in exchange for a once off deposit.

Some locals have been coaxed by an SMS urging them to fork out R150 into a private bank account in exchange for a job opportunity at the Westridge Clinic in Mitchell’s Plain. So victims have subsequently received confirmation of their employment from the scammer, only to find no job awaiting them when pitching up for their ‘first day at work’.

While there are as yet no leads on the suspect, the City has stressed that it maintains strict protocol in its employment of individuals, and no requests would ever be made for an applicant to pay money for a job. Such a request need be treated as a red flag by potential victims.

“It is the first time we find ourselves in a situation like this, and the City has issued a warning that we’ve got our processes (of employment) that need to be observed by the community.

We advise them that when they receive such SMS’s they should make sure to report it to the police. Also with the jobs that are allegedly offered, they must approach the facility or clinic manager and inform them about this before they go and deposit anything,” urged Mayco member for health, Councillor Siyabulela Mamkeli.

The areas most affected by the scam are all in and around the Mitchell’s Plain, including neighbouring Khayelitsha.

Mamkeli said such scammers were praying on the vulnerability of community members desperately in search of employment. He was keen to remind the public that ‘quick solutions’ and ‘shortcuts’ would rarely come to fruition, and would make them vulnerable to such scams.

“It is a combination of factors but I am just pointing to one, where they don’t want to follow the proper processes. But mainly though it is because they don’t know the City processes,” he concluded.

The City of Cape Town advertisers job vacancies online at https://www.capetown.gov.za/en/eRecruiting/Pages/default.aspx. VOC (Mubeen Banderker)