White SA Man Shared Why Employers Preferred Zimbabweans & Malawians Over South Africans As Workers

A public discussion involving white South African content creator Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma and a white South African man has sparked widespread debate over why some employers appear to prefer foreign nationals for domestic, factory and agricultural work.

The conversation was shared on TikTok by Jacinta, who is known on the platform as @koconuttv. In the video, the two participants discussed the frequent employment of Zimbabwean, Malawian and other foreign workers in private homes, factories, farms and small businesses across South Africa.

The man argued that many employers did not necessarily choose foreign workers because they could pay them less. Instead, he claimed that immigrant employees were often viewed as more committed, disciplined and willing to work. He suggested that some South African workers approached employment with what employers regarded as a sense of entitlement.

Jacinta strongly challenged that explanation. She acknowledged that foreign nationals who travel long distances in search of employment may be more willing to tolerate difficult conditions because they urgently need an income. However, she argued that South Africans’ resistance to certain jobs should not automatically be described as laziness or entitlement.

According to Jacinta, the country continues to suffer from the unresolved social and racial divisions created by apartheid. She explained that some black South Africans remain suspicious of white employers because of historical experiences, while some white employers may still hold attitudes shaped by the past. These tensions, she said, continue to influence relationships in the workplace.

Jacinta also argued that many immigrants accept extremely demanding jobs because they have very few alternatives. She referred to foreign-owned tuck shops where workers sometimes live inside the business, work late into the night and have little time for rest or family life. She also mentioned domestic workers who live with their employers, work on weekends, care for children throughout the night and continue with household duties the following morning.

She described such conditions as resembling modern-day slavery, saying many immigrant workers endure them because they need to support relatives in their home countries.

Jacinta maintained that South Africans often reject these arrangements because they have families, households and social responsibilities to return to after work. In her view, wanting reasonable working hours, rest days and fair treatment should be regarded as a basic human need rather than entitlement.

The debate generated strong reactions online. Some viewers agreed that the preference for foreign workers was largely driven by cheap labour and employers’ desire to control vulnerable workers. Others argued that work ethic remained an important factor. The discussion has once again highlighted South Africa’s ongoing tensions over immigration, unemployment, wages, working conditions and the treatment of both local and foreign workers.

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