Petrol station attendants evolved roles for EV charging stations

Daniel Puchert

Daniel Puchert

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Big change coming for petrol stations in South Africa

The gradual switch from petrol and diesel cars to electric vehicles (EVs) is unlikely to wipe out fuel stations or all of the 140,000 jobs they create in South Africa.

Instead, many of these positions will likely evolve into roles serving additional functions at "mobility" stations, offering a wider range of products and services than garages.
 
Many of the developed countries around the world that are pushing for EV adoption already use self-service at fuel stations, so the transition to electric charging stations had no impact on jobs.

South Africa’s public EV charging approach is similar to Europe, the US, and many developed countries in that drivers plug in and pay for their charging themselves.

Some might surmise that this change will eliminate the need for pump attendants completely.
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GridCars director DeVilliers Botha told MyBroadband that although there would likely be some job cuts as a result of the transition, a significant number of attendants and workers would take up alternative roles.

Botha also explained that EVs still needed small regular checkups — like windshield cleaning, washer fluid replacement, and tyre pressure corrections — which many people won’t want to fuss about doing themselves.

Rubicon e-mobility general manager Hilton Musk said that fuel stations would continue to evolve and that petrol attendants’ roles would be adapted with the changes.
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So you'll probably still have a surcharge that they check tires and clean windshields.
I'm still expecting places like shopping malls to shift over to providing electricity instead.

And the last bit:
A developing concern around EV charging stations is potential targeting by copper cable theft syndicates.
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Notably, Botha told MyBroadband that GridCars had not seen any instances of vandalism or theft at its stations in South Africa, despite copper theft being a regular crime in South Africa.

A major part of this might be down to the chargers often being placed in locations with high foot traffic or a security presence — like malls or underground office parking bays.
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So remote places still get them for "security".
 
My friend owns a petrol station in SA. He just spent a week with us in the UK, his eyes popped out on stalks when we filled up one of our cars. He can cut over R100k per month from his salary bill by self-service being adopted.

This protected employment for something that adds zero value is bullshit.
 
epah said:
Oh year the 300 annual sales for EV’s in South Africa is going to put 140 000 fuel attends jobs at risk.

Can the bull crap just stop now. It’s hard to take these articles seriously.

#highlyInfuriating
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That's very short sighted, EV will definitely overtake ICE, question is just one of timing.
EU is attempting a 2035 ban on ICE, multiple states are planning ICE sales bans, it would be strange if South Africa's car market did not shift as ICE will become more expensive as production will lower (while EV should become cheaper).
Sinbad said:
My friend owns a petrol station in SA. He just spent a week with us in the UK, his eyes popped out on stalks when we filled up one of our cars. He can cut over R100k per month from his salary bill by self-service being adopted.

This protected employment for something that adds zero value is bullshit.
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It actually annoys me tbh, I like being able to pull up and immediately tank without having to wait if they don't have enough attendants and don't have to check to make sure they're correctly using petrol/diesel.

The only thing I like about it is that it can be good for older people for e.g. tire pressure checks, but everyone I know that's older here has friends/family that help out with that once in a while (plus more modern cars having a warning for when the tire pressure is too low).
 
Are we going to have to keep paying someone for plugging in our car?

I spent the past two months in the UK and US pumping my own gas petrol... (except in New Jersey, USA still) and I'm fairly confident many South Africans can manage to pump their own as well.
 
Daniel Puchert said:
Big change coming for petrol stations in South Africa

The gradual switch from petrol and diesel cars to electric vehicles (EVs) is unlikely to wipe out fuel stations or all of the 140,000 jobs they create in South Africa.

Instead, many of these positions will likely evolve into roles serving additional functions at "mobility" stations, offering a wider range of products and services than garages.
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The whole petrol attendant thing is just annoying anyway.

Just get out of your car and swipe your card in the pump, shove it in the car and pump fuel.

Or, get out of your car and plug the charger cables in.

Its not rocket science.
 
bwana said:
Are we going to have to keep pay someone for plugging in our car?
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Yes of course - hard to go backwards on this, in fact we'll probably need to find additional roles that people can fulfill as unemployment rate keeps going up.
 
hj007 said:
Yes of course - hard to go backwards on this, in fact we'll probably need to find additional roles that people can fulfill as unemployment rate keeps going up.
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It really isn't hard at all if you're not trying to win votes.

EDIT - and switching to self service is going forwards not backwards. At one time self service was unheard of and pump jockeys were de rigueur globally. The rest of the world has mostly moved on.
 
Sinbad said:
My friend owns a petrol station in SA. He just spent a week with us in the UK, his eyes popped out on stalks when we filled up one of our cars. He can cut over R100k per month from his salary bill by self-service being adopted.

This protected employment for something that adds zero value is bullshit.
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The novelty of pumping your own petrol or diesel wears thin very quickly. It took me living overseas for several years to appreciate how spoilt we are in South Africa to have people pumping our fuel for us.
 
deweyzeph said:
The novelty of pumping your own petrol or diesel wears thin very quickly. It took me living overseas for several years to appreciate how spoilt we are in South Africa to have people pumping our fuel for us.
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I pumped my own diesel for the first time in Croatia, damn those handles were greasy as ****.
 
deweyzeph said:
The novelty of pumping your own petrol or diesel wears thin very quickly. It took me living overseas for several years to appreciate how spoilt we are in South Africa to have people pumping our fuel for us.
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You pay for the privilege...

That being said, I've filled up once in the last 9 months... :D
 
Sinbad said:
You pay for the privilege...
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Exactly and the price is high.

Besides, in many places if you're too lazy to fill it up yourself there are still attendants to do it for you.
 
Sinbad said:
My friend owns a petrol station in SA. He just spent a week with us in the UK, his eyes popped out on stalks when we filled up one of our cars. He can cut over R100k per month from his salary bill by self-service being adopted.
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Last I checked their salary was a line item in the price of every litre we bought. I dont think he should expect to still be getting that money if the country switched to self service.
 
Gotta keep those jobs, not allowed to plug it in yourself, or your tv for that matter. It's a redundant job in any case.
 
bwana said:
Last I checked their salary was a line item in the price of every litre we bought. I dont think he should expect to still be getting that money if the country switched to self service.
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Sure

But there's also the overhead of employing them, not just salary - not sure that is also included in that line item?
 
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