The uncertain lives of Zimbabwean Exemption Permit holders: Zimbabwean waiters in Johannesburg

Abstract

Drawing on the social and economic experiences of Zimbabwean migrant waiters who hold the Zimbabwean Exemption Permit (ZEP) in Johannesburg, South Africa, this study aimed to understand what it means to live in a state of uncertainty. Zimbabwean migrants are a crucial group in the South African migration discourse, as they have historically dominated the migration space, making them a critical group from which to understand the migrant experience, particularly within the informal sector. Qualitative in nature, this comparative case study examined the uncertainty of legal status through interviews with documented and undocumented migrant waiters. It enabled the interrogation of migration governance in determining the experiences of migrants in host countries and a reconsideration of the categories attached to migrants, which shape their experiences in host countries. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data, and the following themes emerged: Changing Migration Status, Misinformation, Scepticism and Deflection to Illegal Migration, Invisibilised Legal Status, Conditioned State of Exploitation, Living in Fear, Future Perceptions, and Agency. Evidence from the data suggests that living in uncertainty does not only mean bearing an unpredictable legal status, which frames the social and economic uncertainties of international migrants, but also living with intertwining factors that reinforce uncertainty in complex ways. However, this also means living with agency to confront the uncertainties.