Haddy Jatta, 68, has worked as a cleaner at the University of The Gambia since its establishment in 1999.
Jatta has worked under various university administrations since 1999 and witnessed significant changes during her tenure; however, her monthly take-home pay remains disappointing.
She recalled receiving D800 as her salary during her early days at the University. Despite this poor emolument, Jatta persevered and would continue working at the University for over two decades. Her story personifies sheer perseverance and the lives of domestic workers.
“My work at the UTG is better because if I sit at home, I will not get what I’m getting,” she said in a profoundly emotional tone.
Despite her sheer take-home salary, Jatta weathers the storm, shouldering the responsibility to provide for her family.
“I do the work to upkeep my family. I have been patient until my retirement; I am from a poor family. I can say I’m the better one amongst them because of my work,” she said.
Jatta comes from a humble but less privileged family, which may have contributed to her longevity as a cleaner at the university cleaner
Like many low-income earners, her situation depicts a real scenario of living from hand to mouth. Yet, she would still extend generosity to other family members.
“My elder brother is an Islamic teacher, and he lives in Cassamance. He has nothing, and he depends on me. Whatever I have here, I share with him. One of my sisters resides in Brikama. She often passes by, and I share the little I have with her,” She revealed.
The fear of aggravating an already dire situation motivates Jatta to stay in this job for a long time. She is often perplexed about what to do next if she quits the less-paid cleaner job at UTG.
“I have struggled for a long time now, but Allah doesn’t see me through to change the situation of my family,” she said.
“With my decades of service at UTG, 5 am meets me every day, and I work with due diligence. If UTG doesn’t recognize my efforts, Allah will do,” an emotional Jatta said.
Professor Kah, one of the University’s first Vice Chancellors, contributed immensely to Jatta’s career at the UTG. Jatta hailed Kah as an ‘exceptional’ and ‘development-oriented’ leader.
“During his time, he registered a series of developments. Our salaries were not good, and eventually, they stopped giving us payslips. When Prof Kah came, he told us clearly that he couldn’t increase our salaries because he had a lot of work to do. He promised to increase our payment when he settled. Unfortunately, it never happened because he doesn’t stay long,” she said.
Working as a cleaner at most places in the Gambia is largely underpaid. Many wouldn’t endure the heat of earning low due to the high cost of living and rent.
This usually leads to many people quitting their jobs to seek. However, Jatta urged her co-workers to remain steadfast in the face of adversity.
“I am pleading to my co-workers to be patient and do their work honestly until their retirement arrives. Allah only rewards people through their actions. If they leave the work, they will not get the little they are receiving from the UTG,” She urged
Haddy’s years of dedication and hard work have not gone unnoticed. Her co-cleaners, lecturers, and even the founding Dean of the UTG School of Journalism and Digital Media praised the Gambia’s main University’s longest-serving cleaner.
“She does a wonderful job by leading the cleaners at SJDM. When she revealed that she reaches campus at 6 am, I was baffled that she comes to school that early morning,” Nana Grey-Johnson, SJDM founding Dean, said.
Haddy’s current poor financial status is aggravated by her single mother status, having no surviving child of her own to take care of her at this age like most of her peers.
She spent all her earnings caring for her siblings and their children – none attained higher education.
“I was surprised to know that she is a single mother. She always talks about children, but I am surprised that those children are not hers,” Nana Grey Johnson said.
At her age, she still provides daily meals for those under her care, forcing her to continue on contract after completing 60 years. She reaches 60 years old in The Gambia.
Haddy’s co-cleaners are also going through similar financial struggles, but at her age, they are worried about her health.
“She is an elderly woman now, and her legs are not as strong as before. This is one of the reasons the management is allowing her to retire,” said Bintou Sanneh, Haddy’s co-worker.
With hopes dashed, Haddy, like her co-cleaners, is motivated not by the little financial reward she receives from the University but by her belief that God will see her through.
Bintou said life would have been better for Haddy and all of them if they had been in Europe, where, with their experience, they could have served as supervisors, but this is not the case at the UTG.
“Those of us who started the cleaning at UTG can be supervisors. They have to bring somebody to supervise us. If it was based on merit, we are the pioneers of cleaning at UTG,” she said.
The UTG is the Gambia’s first public university, established by the Gambia government in 1999.
Haddy is currently one of the few staff of the University who started work since its establishment 25 years ago.
This story is championed by the University of The Gambia 200-level Film Studies 2 Students as part of their school assignment under the supervision of Prince Abubakar A. Sankanu
The sole objective of the report is to secure financial support for Haddy Jatta from any donor or philanthropic organization, as it highlights the challenges faced by domestic workers whose voices are often unheard.
