The South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) has accepted a mere R1 an hour increase for private cleaners who are already earning a low salary.
This has angered other unions representing cleaners and yesterday cleaners took to the streets of Pretoria to express their dissatisfaction.
Songs of Phansi ngombuso ka Satawu, phambili ngama cleaners(Down with Satawu’s rule, forward with the cleaners) were sung outside the Pretoria News offices.
Satawu said on Sunday it had signed a three-year deal and hoped workers would be thrilled with it, “particularly the wage increase which is above the narrow expectations of conservative economists”.
Satawu also announced that workers would get a full 13th cheque from December and that no worker would work less than 35 hours a week, but workers said this was not enough.
Meneer Letsholo, shop steward for the Hotel, Liquor, Catering, Commercial and Allied Workers Union, said the other unions did not agree with Satawu and were not happy with the deal.
They are the Democratic Union of Security Workers; SA Cleaners, Security and Allied Workers Union; Professional Transport and Allied Workers Union of SA; SA National Security Forum; National Service and Allied Workers Union; and National Union of Hotel Restaurant Catering, Commercial Health and Allied Workers.
In terms of the deal, in year one, workers in Area A (people working in metropolitan and local councils) will get an increase from R12.51 an hour to R13.51 an hour. That is an 8 percent increase.
Area C (those in the rest of South Africa) will get an increase from R11.27 an hour to R12.23 an hour – an 8.5 percent increase.
“Satawu signed without consulting with us; they are sell-outs. We’re not going back to work until they agree to our demands,” said Letsholo.
The deal also stipulates that in year two, Area A and Area C will get an increase at a rate per hour equivalent to CPI plus 2 percent.
In year three, Area A will get an increase at a rate per hour equivalent to CPI plus 2 percent and Area C will get an increase of 2.5 percent an hour which will also be equivalent to the CPI of that year.
Letsholo said the workers did not agree with the idea of getting a 2 percent increase for two years.
“We can agree to the 2 percent increase for one year, but we refuse to accept it for two years,” he said.
Letsholo also lambasted the idea of working 24 hours a week as the agreement suggested.
The workers want to work eight hours a day and refuse to sign anything that will see them working less.
The deal also states that in year one when the deal is signed, a minimum of 24 hours a week are guaranteed for all workers but that the number of hours worked in any one week will be averaged over a period not exceeding three months.
In year two, a minimum of 30 hours a week is guaranteed and in year three, a minimum of 35 hours.
“The proposed hours will not cover us and we don’t agree with them. We want to work 40 hours a week so we can support our families,” said Letsholo.