How the rich can share the burden of lifting lockdown

25 June 2020 | Story Carla Bernardo. Photo Michael Hammond. Read time 5 min.
Athol Williams is an experienced corporate strategy advisor, award-winning author and poet, and an activist.
Athol Williams is an experienced corporate strategy advisor, award-winning author and poet, and an activist.

As calls grow louder in certain sectors of society for the South African government to lift the nationwide lockdown, University of Cape Town (UCT) academic Athol Williams has proposed a way to do so that is in the interest of the poor.

Williams, a senior lecturer specialising in corporate responsibility and ethical leadership at UCT’s Graduate School of Business, is calling for employers to fund the healthcare of the poor who are most likely to contract infections. This funding would be in the form of a ‘special insurance’.

Williams explained that the most common reason used by those in favour of lifting the lockdown is that the poor suffer the most; lifting the lockdown would thus be pro-poor. However, he argued that these calls are not as altruistic as they seem.

 

“There is only upside for the rich to lift the lockdown while to the poor there is some upside in the form of income, but dire potential downsides in terms of potential death.”

The senior lecturer explained that if it is to be accepted that there is a rich–poor dichotomy in South Africa – an assumption implicit in the pro-poor calls – then it is instructive to observe how these two groups fare under lockdown compared to when lockdown is lifted.

“Under lockdown, the poor lose income which, as the newly enlightened pro-poor ‘activists’ point out, threaten the livelihoods of the poor,” said Williams.

By lifting the lockdown, they argue that the poor can earn an income again – however measly this might be – and thus restore their livelihoods.

“But lifting the lockdown will result in a surge of coronavirus infections and deaths, a burden that will be disproportionately borne by the poor. So, while the poor gain incomes from lifting the lockdown, they will risk their lives by returning to work,” he said.

Under lockdown, the rich lose wealth; their asset values decline, and they receive dampened incomes and bonuses. Lifting the lockdown relieves the rich of these burdens.

“So, what the rich gain from lifting the lockdown is wealth,” said Williams.

“What cost do they bear? Certainly not the cost of their lives as is the case with the poor.

“There is only upside for the rich to lift the lockdown while to the poor there is some upside in the form of income, but dire potential downsides in terms of potential death.”

Break the deadlock

For Williams, it is a skewed discussion: “For the rich, the discussion is about wealth whereas for the poor, the discussion is about whether they will live or die.”

On one side is the argument to retain the lockdown to save lives while on the other, the argument is that it should be lifted to save lives from poverty. Inevitably, there is a stalemate. But Williams suggests a way out.

“I believe we can break the deadlock if the rich were to share the downside burden that the poor would face if we lift the lockdown.”

He explained that the rich must fund the incremental healthcare costs of the poor who are most likely to contract infections. They would be able to do so with some of the economic gains they stand to acquire if the lockdown is lifted.

 

“This would be a powerful test of the sincerity of those calling for the lockdown to be lifted on the grounds that they are making the call in the interest of the poor.”

Williams proposed that this could be in the form of a ‘special insurance’. Employers would need to pledge that none of their employees will die of COVID-19 and put in place a programme that ensures their employees receive adequate treatment the moment they contract the virus. In the unfortunate event that an employee does succumb to the virus, the special insurance must make a payout to the family.

The principle of this proposal already exists: companies pay staff a premium in the form of hazard pay when they are asked to work in dangerous situations like violent zones or extreme weather. The South African government also already pays danger allowances to certain categories of employees, for example, nurses in psychiatric wards. According to Williams, the same principle applies here.

“Sharing the benefit and the burden of opening the economy breaks the stalemate and enables us to move forward in a morally fair way,” he said.

“This would be a powerful test of the sincerity of those calling for the lockdown to be lifted on the grounds that they are making the call in the interest of the poor.”


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UCT’s response to COVID-19

COVID-19 is a global pandemic that caused President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a national disaster in South Africa on 15 March 2020 and to implement a national lockdown from 26 March 2020. UCT is taking the threat of infection in our university community extremely seriously, and this page will be updated with the latest COVID-19 information. Please note that the information on this page is subject to change depending on current lockdown regulations.

Minister of Health, Dr Joe Phaahla, has in June 2022 repealed some of South Africa’s remaining COVID-19 regulations: namely, sections 16A, 16B and 16C of the Regulations Relating to the Surveillance and the Control of Notifiable Medical Conditions under the National Health Act. We are now no longer required to wear masks or limit gatherings. Venue restrictions and checks for travellers coming into South Africa have now also been removed.

In July 2022, the University of Cape Town (UCT) revised its approach to managing the COVID-19 pandemic on UCT campuses in 2022.
Read the latest document available on the UCT policies web page.

 

Campus communications

 
2022

Adjusting to our new environment 16:50, 23 June 2022
VC Open Lecture and other updates 17:04, 13 April 2022
Feedback from UCT Council meeting of 12 March 2022 09:45, 18 March 2022
UCT Council
March 2022 graduation celebration 16:45, 8 March 2022
Report on the meeting of UCT Council of 21 February 2022 19:30, 21 February 2022
UCT Council
COVID-19 management 2022 11:55, 14 February 2022
Return to campus arrangements 2022 11:15, 4 February 2022

UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre

On Wednesday, 20 July, staff from the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Faculty of Health Sciences came together with representatives from the Western Cape Government at the UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre at Forest Hill Residence to acknowledge the centre’s significance in the fight against COVID-19 and to thank its staff for their contributions. The centre opened on 1 September 2021 with the aim of providing quality vaccination services to UCT staff, students and the nearby communities, as well as to create an opportunity for medical students from the Faculty of Health Sciences to gain practical public health skills. The vaccination centre ceased operations on Friday, 29 July 2022.

With the closure of the UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre, if you still require access to a COVID-19 vaccination site please visit the CovidComms SA website to find an alternative.

 

“After almost a year of operation, the University of Cape Town’s (UCT) Community of Hope Vaccination Centre, located at the Forest Hill residence complex in Mowbray, will close on Friday, 29 July 2022. I am extremely grateful and proud of all staff, students and everyone involved in this important project.”
– Vice-Chancellor Prof Mamokgethi Phakeng

With the closure of the UCT Community of Hope Vaccination Centre, if you still require access to a COVID-19 vaccination site please visit the CovidComms SA website to find an alternative.


Thank You UCT Community

Frequently asked questions

 

Global Citizen Asks: Are COVID-19 Vaccines Safe & Effective?

UCT’s Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine (IDM) collaborated with Global Citizen, speaking to trusted experts to dispel vaccine misinformation.



If you have further questions about the COVID-19 vaccine check out the FAQ produced by the Desmond Tutu Health Foundation (DTHF). The DTHF has developed a dedicated chat function where you can ask your vaccine-related questions on the bottom right hand corner of the website.

IDM YouTube channel | IDM website
 

 

“As a contact university, we look forward to readjusting our undergraduate and postgraduate programmes in 2023 as the COVID-19 regulations have been repealed.”
– Prof Harsha Kathard, Acting Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Teaching and Learning

We are continuing to monitor the situation and we will be updating the UCT community regularly – as and when there are further updates. If you are concerned or need more information, students can contact the Student Wellness Service on 021 650 5620 or 021 650 1271 (after hours), while staff can contact 021 650 5685.

 

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