Second chances – the convict and the cabinetmaker

Almost every day someone comes knocking at the factory gate, looking for work. Young men and women, usually in two’s or three’s, walking around Johannesburg’s industrial areas. One-page CVs clutched tightly, usually in an envelope or plastic bag, wandering from factory to factory. Most have little or no discernible skill sets or training. Most struggle to communicate effectively, wringing the life out of whatever finds itself in their hands. Many of them have never been given a chance at steady…