Waste pickers and the law: Contradictory and fragmented regulation in three metropolitan municipalities

This contribution explores the contemporary regulatory framework pertaining to waste pickers. It does so by analysing certain municipal bylaws in three metropolitan municipalities, namely the City of Johannesburg; Ekurhuleni and the City of Cape-Town, that impact upon these vulnerable workers. It additionally considers the protection offered to waste pickers by the Department of Water Affairs Minimum Requirements for Waste Disposal by Landfill and analyses the extent to which these minimum requirements create legally enforceable rights for waste pickers within the three metropolitan municipalities. It concludes with a range of policy suggestions for the extension of protection to a greater number of waste pickers.