Organizing on the Streets: A Study of Reclaimers in ... - Inclusive Cities

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WIEGO <strong>Organizing</strong> SeriesMandla* told us that selling waste is on a first-come-first-served basis and on Mondays they wakeup early for waste reclaiming hoping to collect more from the waste accumulated over the week-end.It is interesting that many spoke of working “9 to 5” when asked about their working hours, butwhen speaking about how they organize their work in terms of days and times and streets, thespecifics emerged of where people have learned to go and when.Those who worked individually said there were no negotiations with others as to where or whento collect: “I take what I see, no territories or gangs. If it is rubbish day in Mowbray I go there, orVredehoek (town),” said Mathius Jansen*. But others mentioned ethnicity, and fighting over foodas sources of conflict. Bethuel* explained that he works alone and because he is a Tswana he doesnot mix extensively with other people. He further claimed that they sometimes fight one anotherdue to ethnic/language differences. Bethuel asserts that he is from Soweto and likes to stay alone.One reclaimer, David*, said: “some people say that this is their street, you go away! I collect here!I don’t have a specific street. If you put strollers together, you’ll get murdered. I don’t know you,you stab me. It’s about finding people you can trust to work with.” He continued that “sometimesI work with my friend who is a man. I don’t have a girlfriend so I don’t have her to collect with.”A reclaimer from Khayelitsha said that he does reclaiming alone on a daily basis and regards thisas work. His day starts at 6 in the morning and ends at 4 in the afternoon, but on some days hetakes time to buy stock for the shop. The elderly women reclaimers take turns or do reclaimingwhen they are free or do not have materials for their projects. “We collect individually for our ownneeds – but we do also share the collection if one of us is not able to reach a mark up or has beenill,” said one reclaimer. They collect empty bottles everyday around Khayelitsha, mostly targetingplaces where there have been social functions like weddings and imigidi (initiation ceremonies).This was also the case in Philippi-Gugulethu where we found a similar split between peopleworking as individuals and those that work in pairs or in groups of 4 to 10 or more. They work asfriends or at times as family members; spouses and children. Some club together to make up thekilograms and share the money. One man used to work with a friend that introduced him to thiswork, who later died due to a stabbing in a shebeen. 20Those who are in groups share the proceeds equally. Initially they used to divide the proceedsaccording to each one’s contribution but they experienced conflicts, so now they share it equallyand it does not matter even if some people arrived late. An elderly man of 76 works with a friend.Most of them do their daily collections in the neighbourhood, the airport industrial area and insites where there are demolitions. They go to residential areas when there are local municipalgarbage collection days.6.4 Reclaimers’ EarningsThere was a wide range of estimates as to how much money reclaimers make in a day’s work. Allthe reclaimers interviewed complained about the poor prices the buy-back centres offer. They feelthat the buy-back centres are earning huge profits at their expense.Reclaimers from the Philippi-Gugulethu area claimed that prices had gone down sharply since2008. A kilogram of light steel used to be R1.00 but now it is worth 70c. The amounts earned byreclaimers per day for plastic varies from as little as R1,60 to R68 at 80c per kilogram. Buy-backcentres in the Salt River-Woodstock area were viewed as offering good prices.Some of the reclaimers in Salt River-Woodstock said that they could earn as much as R60 to R70per day while others spoke more of R10 to R50 per day. To break this down more precisely, twosaid they made less than R10 and were collecting to buy bread or a drink. Seven said they madebetween R10 and R20 a day. Six said they made between R30 and R50 a day. Seven reclaimersmade between R60 and R80 a day.20 Shebeens are mostly found in townships, and are either licensed or unlicensed bars.14
<strong>Organizing</strong> on the Streets: A Study of Reclaimers in the Streets of Cape TownThose in the lower and middle range of earnings seemed to be working on a hand-to-mouthbasis. For example, a male reclaimer told us that between 07h00 and 10h00 he “skarrelled” to earnbetween R60 and R70 which he used to supplement his earnings from cleaning taxi cabs for R280a week (which he did six days a week for the rest of the day). Even with this consistent job, he didnot earn enough to pay rent, and slept in an empty garage with his partner, who also collected.“Maybe next year they will kick us out and then I will need a place, so when I skarrel, I am alsolooking for places to rent.” He said he spends his money “first on food, then clothes, then a dop”. 21His goal was to be able to open a bank account and save by 2011.Other very low earners also spoke of using their income for bread and alcohol. Most wouldagree with Justice who said that he earned R50 to R70 a day, which was “not much.” Unlike thefluctuating “range” described by many, the highest and most consistent earners were those whofocused on scrap metal, all of whom were male. On average the metal reclaimers we spoke toearned more than R100 a day, with one group of three young men in their teens and late twentiesclaiming to earn up to R1 000 per day.Also lucrative were the endeavours of Huston* who collected everything, including antiques, andbetween him and his co-worker, who also painted and sold T-shirts, they had an intricate systemof collecting and selling what others who we spoke to in the area took little notice of.In Khayelitsha a reclaimer who was interviewed gets approximately R400 a month from CORC.These women get paid R10 for a full municipal refuse bin. They feel that the money is too littlebut at least it helps for the day-to-day necessities like bread. They claim that because of their agethey are not able to do more. Their ages range from 70 to the 80s and ill-health prevents them fromparticipating in waste-collection, hence they believe in the principle of sharing. The women viewthis as something that enables them to provide food for their families. They are not concernedabout calling it a job or work or a project, as long it supplements their old-age social grants.According to the manager of the plastic buy-back centre, the ex-MK cadre, reclaimers are notmaking good money, especially females who tend to collect fewer things. They may barely makeR50 a day, whereas a male reclaimer with a self-made cart can collect loads of plastic weighing upto 86 kilograms.Some claim that they get from as little as R10 from Scrap for Africa. If they collect steel up to 60kilograms in weight, they can get up to R80. Some claimed that two big bags of steel and tin earnthem R70. A reclaimer claimed that at Boland Scrap he is paid R80 for 20 kilograms of steel orcopper while another reclaimer stated that he collects metal from 60 kilograms up to 100 kilogramsbut did not provide the amount he earns for this weight. Another claimed that the averagepayment in a day ranges from as little as R30 to R100.A huge steel container filled with glass bottles pays up to a R1 000 and takes months to fill. Onewoman claimed that it was really difficult because it takes about two weeks to make a beam fullof glass bottles and she gets about R1 000 after two months. Male reclaimers explained that theyearn “good” money from collecting copper, while the lowest paying waste reclaiming activity isplastic collection.21 Literally means a lot of an alcoholic beverage.15
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