The Educators Union of South Africa wants schools in the country to be temporarily shut down amid the Covid-19 third wave.
This after Basic Education Minister, Angie Motshekga announced that schools will remain open and that a blanket approach to closing schools simply will not do.
Motshekga said that Covid-19 cases would be handled according to the differentiated risk adjustment strategy.
The union’s Western Cape chairperson Andre de Bruyn said: “There is no safe space in a school at the moment. It’s winter, kids get sick, it’s very difficult social distance. Our stance is close schools now. We’re on the front line, we feel that people are scared.”
Last week the Western Cape Education department recorded 148 active cases of covid-19 amongst school staff members and 314 active cases amongst learners in the province.
Education MEC, Debbie Schäfer said that most of the cases are being reported by schools, however the provincial Department of Health had confirmed that the spike in infections is linked to social events rather than pupils being at school.
In the meantime vaccine rollout for teachers is expected to begin on 23 June and run until schools close on 8 July.