Johannesburg - Telkom workers who attempted to go to work on Monday, in defiance of an ongoing strike by Communication Workers Union (CWU) members, have been “aggressively intimidated”, this according to Telkom spokesperson Jacqui O’Sullivan.
O’Sullivan told Independent Media there has been a blockade at one of Telkom’s campuses in Pretoria. “We are currently working with the [police] to secure access to Telkom Park.”
O’Sullivan said CWU members have not allowed staff to enter the campus and some yards. “They have physically shoved our people and have threatened them with violence. I was personally a recipient of this attempt at intimidation.”
There are less than 100 striking workers outside one of the Telkom offices in Pretoria, which amounts to less than 4 percent of the Telkom work force. Telkom currently employs 12 500 people, of which some 11 000 are unionised. It was previously reported that 950 staff members went on strike on Thursday over wage demands.
Read also: Telkom workers threaten countrywide strike
The union has demanded Telkom implement an 11 percent across-the-board increase, a three-year moratorium on retrenchments and outsourcing, and six months paid maternity leave.
In February, Bloomberg - citing an internal document, said Telkom wanted to cut its workforce to about 8 000 by July, an about 40 percent reduction, as it seeks to keep trimming costs. Some 4 200 staff accepted voluntary retrenchment packages recently.
Agreement
O’Sullivan said certain agreements have been met with the union which include no forced retrenchments in the next 24 months. “Telkom has met the unions on so many of their demands, such as a moratorium on retrenchments, a cap on outsourcing and a guaranteed increase next year, so it is disappointing to not only see industrial action from the CWU but for it to be accompanied with aggressive intimidation of our employees, while blocking access to our campus and some facilities.”
In June, Telkom and two unions - Solidarity and the South African Communications Union - agreed to a two-year deal that will allow it to introduce widespread performance-based remuneration for both individuals and teams.
Under the new deal, staff will not get a pay rise this year, but have the opportunity to earn up to 12 percent more each month, should they meet and exceed sales and customer service targets. From April next year, staff will get a 6 percent increase on basic pay. Inflation is currently 6.2 percent.
Telkom said an employee who is achieving their targets can expect to earn about 6 percent more than last year, under the Performance Pays scheme, with further upside for over-achieving employees.
"Performance Pays has been developed to incentive's great performance against productivity and customer service targets,” says O’Sullivan.
Telkom added it must turn its full attention to their customers now. “We have to focus on how best we can improve our productivity and better serve our customers."
Despite numerous attempts, CWU was unavailable for comment.
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