It’s dirty work – but someone has to do it

Refuse collectors toil under difficult conditions to keep city clean

It is daybreak at 5.40am on a Wednesday. There are about 20 refuse workers at the canteen of the waste management depot in Port Elizabeth’s Harrower Road.

This is their office – a small, stuffy room with a long wooden table in the centre and a row of lockers against the wall. This is where these men change into and out of their overalls before and after work.

It has been a long day – for some it began as early as 4am – and all the workers want is to scrub the dirt of the day off and finally eat something.

• The refuse workers quoted did not use their real names as they fear reprisal from the municipality.