Workers strike at The Lake Club Benoni
“We will continue to strike until the matters is resolved,” said Evelyne Maseko, union official of the South African Commercial Catering and Allied Workers Union (SACCAWU).
Workers from The Lake Club Benoni have been on strike since September 19, due to a labour dispute with their employer.
The employees requested a salary increase of R700, which was declined by their employer.
According to Maseko, negotiations between the union and the CEO of the club began in January.
“It is very unfortunate that we have reached this impasse with the employees, who are also members of SACCAWU,” said The Lake Club Benoni CEO Andrew Bromley.
“The discussions surrounding wage increases were initiated early this year and, due to financial constraints, we were unable to offer any increase.”
The company declined the request and the workers then decided to drop the increase to R500 and, finally, to R450.
“As a non-profit organisation, the club has no shareholders and no person or company benefits from the minor proceeds generated by the club,” said Bromley.
“We cannot afford to pay the increase demanded by the staff (R450 per month across the board) and, if we did, retrenchments would be the unavoidable consequence of meeting this demand at this stage.”
According to Maseko, the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) intervened and the company declared they would increase the salaries by R150 and later raised this to R170.
Bromley said: “Months of negotiations and conciliation meetings with the CCMA eventually culminated in a stalemate when we agreed to the commissioner’s recommendation to increase employee salaries by R200 per month for each staff member.
“This offer was turned down by the union members and a certificate to strike was issued.”
Allegedly, workers then opted to utilise their power to go on strike to show Bromley how serious the matter is.
“We just want to know, how does Bromley feel about workers who have worked for more than 30 years, not earning a minimum wage of R5 000?” Maseko asked.
Maseko stated that temporary employees have been hired to perform the duties of those union members who are currently on strike.
“The withdrawal of labour by the union has consequences and we are doing our best to contend with service interruptions as they arise,” Bromley added.
“The laws relating to strike action and temporary employment (section 76 of the Labour Relations Act) afford us the permission to do so.”
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