Durban - Striking truck drivers set vehicles alight and intimidated drivers in Durban on Wednesday as the national pay strike by more than 20 000 workers in the freight transport sector continued.
Three people were admitted to hospital, said eThekwini metro police spokesman Superintendent Eugene Msomi.
A driver and his two assistants were injured when they tried to get away from striking drivers in Pinetown. The driver tried to drive away but hit a car and then a tree.
He had serious head wounds. His two assistants were slightly injured.
Msomi said the strikers had converged on Pinetown after about 500 had staged a peaceful march through the centre of Durban.
One group congregated in Solomon Mahlangu (Edwin Swales) Drive and South Coast Road where they intimidated drivers and stoned trucks
Another group was stationed at Warwick Avenue leading into Williams Road where they prevented truck drivers from entering the harbour at Maydon Road.
Isolated protests were reported in the harbour area and southern industrial areas, but there were no arrests.
Rob Mordaunt, owner of Allied Trucking, said the driver who on Tuesday had been badly injured by stone-throwers was in a stable condition in hospital after facial surgery.
Unions reverted to a 12 percent pay demand after rejecting a lower offer on Tuesday.
In Cape Town, striking truck drivers set alight two trucks in Nyanga, police said.
Three drivers were forced to abandon their vehicles and flee when they were attacked by striking drivers in Ekurhuleni.
Two others were badly assaulted.
A visit to various Durban food shops on Wednesday showed most were coping with the strike, but were concerned about what would happen if it went on much longer. The deli in Pick n Pay in Berea Centre was severely affected because it had run out of gas and staff could not cook.
Woolworths in Cowey Road and the Spar in Avondale Road in the Morningside area said their deliveries were continuing as usual, although sometimes they were late. Checkers in Davenport Centre said it had bought stock in advance.
Road Freight Employers’ Association spokeswoman Magretia Brown-Engelbrecht said the situation had not changed, with no further meetings scheduled between unions and employers at this stage.
On Tuesday, workers rejected the association’s proposal of a staggered increase of 8.5 percent effective from March, and a further 0.5 percent from next September.
Satawu spokesman Vincent Masoga said the union would step up the strike in an attempt to get the employers to the negotiating table.
- The Mercury