Business / Companies
TM Cowdray Park branch recruits 10 locals
20 Dec 2010 at 15:22hrs | Views
THE US$1,3 million TM Cowdray Park branch has recruited only 10 people from the local community.
This follows complaints by residents that the retail chain had "imported" labour from other regions at the expense of locals who were supposed to benefit from the development.
The new branch opened doors to the public on Tuesday.
"Fittings from Nkulumane have been transferred to Cowdray Park. The full staff complement of 23 from Nkulumane has moved to the new supermarket, while 10 additional staff members have been recruited from the local community.
"The residents have given us positive feedback while the branch has been under construction. They are happy that TM has finally come," said the company in a statement.
Last month, residents from the suburb staged a demonstration over the alleged disregard of locals in the recruitment of workers for the new branch.
"Reports that we had employed people from other regions were distorted because at that time we were already training locals in some of our branches," said Mrs Sibonisiwe Mpofu, who was branch manager at the closed Nkulumane branch and is heading the new supermarket.
Mrs Mpofu made history five years ago when she was appointed TM's first female supermarket manager.
She has served the supermarket chain for 33 years.
TM said the supermarket was located in a new and growing residential area for which the local authority plans to construct a bus terminus to service the area.
While locals were happy that the supermarket would reduce transport costs as they would get almost all the commodities at TM, small-scale traders in the suburb say they have lost customers to the new supermarket.
This follows complaints by residents that the retail chain had "imported" labour from other regions at the expense of locals who were supposed to benefit from the development.
The new branch opened doors to the public on Tuesday.
"Fittings from Nkulumane have been transferred to Cowdray Park. The full staff complement of 23 from Nkulumane has moved to the new supermarket, while 10 additional staff members have been recruited from the local community.
"The residents have given us positive feedback while the branch has been under construction. They are happy that TM has finally come," said the company in a statement.
Last month, residents from the suburb staged a demonstration over the alleged disregard of locals in the recruitment of workers for the new branch.
"Reports that we had employed people from other regions were distorted because at that time we were already training locals in some of our branches," said Mrs Sibonisiwe Mpofu, who was branch manager at the closed Nkulumane branch and is heading the new supermarket.
Mrs Mpofu made history five years ago when she was appointed TM's first female supermarket manager.
She has served the supermarket chain for 33 years.
TM said the supermarket was located in a new and growing residential area for which the local authority plans to construct a bus terminus to service the area.
While locals were happy that the supermarket would reduce transport costs as they would get almost all the commodities at TM, small-scale traders in the suburb say they have lost customers to the new supermarket.
Source - Cowdry Park
