CAPE TOWN - Angry 10111 police call centre employees who embarked on a national strike say they feel disrespected by police management who put contingency plans in place to avoid disruptions to service delivery.
The call centre workers downed tools, demanding to be paid on par with call centre operators in other spheres of government. They also want transportation.
The dispute dates back to 2013, when the 10111 staff met then-police commissioner Riah Phiyega and Gauteng provincial police chief Lesetja Mothiba regarding their salary level and were promised they would be upgraded from level 5 to level 7.
The union at the forefront of the strike, the South African Policing Union (Sapu), said as a union they needed to step in to protect and support the employees.
“They are the busiest emergency call centre with a high workload and as you can see this call centre is in a industrial place. Most of the employees are women and have to take the train which is not safe. Transport is also a huge concern.”
Yesterday, while a group of employees picketed outside the Maitland 10111 call centre, SAPS officials were doing their jobs and the centre was fully operational throughout the day.
Police spokesperson André Traut said they received national orders and contingency plans were in place to avoid interruptions in service delivery. He said police management was monitoring the
situation.
Mbuthokazi Mlalandle, a centre employees who has been working there for more than 10 years, said they felt disrespected that other people were doing their jobs. “We are tired of empty promises. We deserve to be treated like other spheres of government. We are the most hard-working government call centre employees but earn less than others.We feel disrespected because while we are out here fighting for our rights they decided to find replacements. We don’t care about their no work, no pay.”
Mlalandle said they did not want to be on level 6, the constable level, with a lower salary package.The call centre workers have long complained they are understaffed and have slow, outdated computers.
Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) accused Sapu of ignoring correct procedures. “This strike is not sanctioned by our union. We remain resolute in addressing the matters through correct procedures marching or striking can only undermine the process under way,” Popcru spokesperson Richard Mamabolo said.
Mamabolo said they were awaiting an arbitration hearing date and the outcomes would be communicated to the workers.