About 60 rowdy census workers protested outside Statistics SA’s KwaZulu-Natal offices in Durban on Tuesday chasing and assaulting Mercury photographer Terry Haywood after he took photographs of them.
The enumerators said a protest march was scheduled for on Thursday.
Shouting “we worked hard for our money” outside the Liberty building on the corner of Samora Machel (Aliwal) Street and Dr Pixley Ka Seme (West) Street, they said: “We demand R7 500 instead of R5 000 that we signed on the contract.”
At the weekend about 30 enumerators in Inanda threatened to retain questionnaires until they received bank cards from Statistics SA.
Haywood was assaulted and chased back to his car by the protesters.
“They assaulted me and forced me to delete photographs I had taken. They slammed my car door against my head.” Haywood said he would not open a police case since “nothing will happen”.
“It could have been worse, despite being hit by handbags and being kicked; I am alive and that is what matters.”
The head of Statics SA in KwaZulu-Natal, Nthabiseng Makhatha, said the protest stemmed from reports that Joburg enumerators would be paid more than those in KZN.
Statics SA spokesman Trevor Oosterwyk said the enumerators were being “unfair”.They signed a contract to be paid R5 000 and they would be paid R5 000, he added.
Meanwhile Makhatha hailed people who had contacted Statics SA because they had not been counted.
People who were not visited by enumerators should phone 080 011 0248.