Johannesburg - Johannesburg’s waste management entity Pikitup on Friday said it had reintroduced day shifts in Soweto and in the east of Johannesburg, where operations were being hampered by the four-week workers’ unprotected strike.
Areas where day shifts would be restored are serviced mainly by Avalon, Central Camp, and Zondi depots in Soweto and Norwood depot in the east of Johannesburg, the company said in a statement on Friday.
Pikitup said this intervention was aimed at clearing the build-up of refuse in densely populated areas which generate high volumes of waste and had proven a challenge to service at night.
Spokesperson Jacky Mashapu said plans were afoot to reintroduce day shift services in other regions of the city.
This comes as about 4 000 Pikitup workers affiliated to the SA Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) remain on an unprotected strike.
The workers downed tools on March 9, to press for wage hikes from R6 000 to R10 000 a month. They were also demanding the removal of Pikitup MD Amanda Nair, whom they accuse of graft.
Last year Nair was cleared of any wrongdoing by the high court.
This was the fourth strike by Pikitup workers, since November 2015, over the same reasons though Nair was cleared by the courts on charges of corruption.
As a result of the lengthy strike, the City of Joburg has engaged private contractors and a security company R1 million a day to perform the duties abandoned by striking workers and to protect temporary workers, who have recently been attacked.
Mashapu said that contingency refuse collection crews were continuing to work until late at night to remove refuse from households.
“Pikitup continues to work hard in ensuring the collection of waste during this period around the city,” Mashapu said.
“We, therefore, urge members of the community and business owners to collectively work with us during this period by continuing to drop off waste at the nearest Pikitup garden or landfill sites, respectively.”
Pikitup on Thursday said it paid salaries to all its workers as the norm despite them being on strike for most of March, but the company said it would dock their salaries from April.
Meanwhile, negotiations to end the four-week strike between Pikitup, the City of Johannesburg and Samwu broke down again late Thursday.
Pikitup blamed Samwu for the breakdown alleging it was not being flexible during negotiations, while the union claimed the company was negotiating in bad faith.
Samwu’s regional deputy secretary, Paul Tlhabang, wasn’t immediately available for comment on Friday.
Concurrent to negotiations, Samwu shop stewards linked to the strike were facing charges of gross misconduct for allegedly orchestrating or inciting their Pikitup colleagues to embark on or take part in a previous unlawful work stoppage between February 4 and 5.
They were also facing charges of gross misconduct for embarking on illegal work stoppages in December 2015, February 2016 and March 2016.
Discipline hearings began this week.
Pikitup also said on Friday that the disciplinary process got off to a slow start with the union playing delaying tactics geared to frustrate the process.
Samwu, which was demanding interpreters for all indigenous languages spoken in South Africa before the hearing could begin, eventually withdrew entirely from the process.
But Pikitup said the presiding officer would continue with the hearings in the union members’ absence.
“Pikitup will lead its evidence and close its case, whereupon the presiding officer will reserve judgement and provide his findings a few days later,” Mashapu said.
African News Agency