Pretoria - Municipal services across the country will grind to a halt unless an 11th-hour agreement on wage increases and housing allowances is reached with two unions representing hundreds of thousands of workers within the next few days.
Both the South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) and the Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu) have declared a dispute with the South African Local Government Association (Salga) after several rounds of talks. In the City of Tshwane, more than half of the metro’s staff component of just over 20 000 who are members of the unions will be affected.
After three rounds of talks, Salga tabled a revised offer that included a 5.9 percent salary increase for all employees, plus a minimum wage of R5 953.
This has been turned down by the unions, who are demanding 11 percent and an increased housing allowance which will be extended to all employees irrespective of whether they are renting, owning houses or paying loans towards a bond.
Salga national spokesman Tahir Sema said the unions had refused point-blank to negotiate or revise their demands and instead chose to stick to their “unreasonable and unaffordable 11 percent increase across the board”.
He said the unions also refused to discuss a charter for the sector to improve service delivery for the benefit, good governance and fight against corruption.
However, Samwu spokesman Papikie Mohale told the Pretoria News that Salga was seemingly pushing the workers to settle the negotiations on the streets.
“Our members are ready for the strike, and unfortunately service delivery will be severely affected,” he said. “It is our firm belief that our demands are reasonable and will ensure our members live in dignity… ”
Anja Muller, of Imatu, said the union was part of the resolution that had been taken by Samwu, and its members would also down tools if the negotiations did not lead to desired results. This would plunge communities into chaos, as witnessed during the strike of 2012 by municipal workers.
Mohale said they acknowledged that a strike would inconvenience communities and essential services such as electricity, water, sanitation, crowd control and refuse collection would be badly affected. “But we cannot be bulldozed into signing an agreement that will not be beneficial to our members,” he stated. “The matter has been referred for conciliation in the bargaining council. Any further negotiations with Salga will be in the context of a dispute resolution.
“Should both parties fail to get a mutually beneficial solution, we will then get a certificate of non-resolution which will lead to a protected full-blown nationwide strike action.”
Mohale said the decision was not taken lightly. “It was a painful one, bearing in mind the consequences of a strike action on our members and most importantly South Africans, as it would mean no provisions of basic services such as electricity, water, sanitation, waste management and collection, grave digging and traffic control,” he said.
According to Salga, the unions decided to walk out and withdrew their leadership from the negotiations. Sema said Salga was surprised to learn of the dispute that had been declared by the unions as it came before the negotiations were concluded.
“It is premature to call off the negotiations and threaten a national strike. There are still other mechanisms that have not yet been exhausted. We will go to the next round of the talks in the hope that the unions will come to their sense and come with a revised demand.
How far apart they are:
Union demands
* 11 percent across the board salary increase.
* Minimum wage increase to R7 625.
* Housing allowance of R1 100 to all employees.
* R600 a month for employees who do not own or rent houses, with the remaining R500 deposited into a saving scheme for a maximum of 10 years. Thereafter, the employee will be able to withdraw it and use it to purchase a house.
Salga’s offer
* 5.9 percent increase.
* For year two: consumer price index plus 0.25 percent.
* For year three: consumer price index plus 0.25 percent.
* Minimum wage R5 953
* Proposals on the home owner allowance, which require further consideration.
Pretoria News