The City of Cape Town has warned that a new Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) jobs scam is making the rounds on popular messaging platform WhatsApp.
According to the city’s urban waste management directorate, the message circulating on WhatsApp invites potential recruits to apply via an external link.
The WhatsApp message is fake, stresses the city, adding that some jobseekers have already fallen victim.
“We appeal to jobseekers to please be extra vigilant. It is very important to note that the city would never ask community members to pay for work opportunities, or to pay to apply for a job,” says alderman Grant Twigg, mayoral committee member for urban waste management.
Driven by the Department of Public Works, the EPWP is a government initiative that provides employment and income earning opportunities in the short- to medium-term.
As South Africa continues to grapple with rising unemployment, particularly among the youth, the EPWP initiative provides work opportunities on a temporary or ongoing basis with government, contractors, or other non-governmental organisations.
The programme creates work opportunities in four sectors: infrastructure, non-state, environment, and culture and social.
Members of the public that would like to be considered for EPWP work opportunities must register on the Jobseeker Database at their local sub-council office, notes the city.
Registration on the EPWP database remains open and jobseekers must be between the ages of 18 and 60, and will be randomly selected from this database.
Once they are selected, EPWP beneficiaries should bring along a certified copy of their identity document and proof of residence.
If jobseekers suspect an EPWP opportunity could be a scam, the city says they can verify the information by contacting the EPWP help desk on 021 400 9406, or e-mail epwp.help@capetown.gov.za.
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