Lindani Sibiya, a spokesperson on behalf of Samwu, said the workers were never deliberately working slowly to increase their overtime pay.
In a previous article, Clr Jacques Meiring (Ward 27) was quoted as saying: “We’ve been told workers were deliberately working slowly, to increase their overtime pay.”
“Now, the department has stopped that, meaning everyone has to stop working at normal knock-off time.
“This is causing a massive backlog issue.”
Sibiya said the municipal employees could not previously finish their work on time, because of a lack of manpower and trucks.
“They then said we have to stop work at 3.30pm exactly, but they did not present a plan to prevent a backlog from developing,” Sibiya said.
“There is no strike, it boils down to miscommunication between the workers and management.”
Clr André du Plessis (Ward 23) previously said there is a strike at the Benoni Depot and, on November 7, he said it was still ongoing, as far as he knew.
Du Plessis said the workers do not want to call it a strike, but it is a cessation of work.
According to Clr Kabelo Mahonko (Ward 24), many areas in her ward are still skipped or collected too late.
“There is no flow to the collection, and then people start dumping their rubbish in open spaces,” she said on November 7.
Sibiya said: “We are waiting for management to come back to us with a date for a meeting, to discuss the issue around the current backlogs developing in Benoni.”
Also read:
Benoni refuse collection internal dispute is a mess
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