STRIKING mortuary staff have returned to work at the Magwaza Maphalala (Gale) Street Medico-Legal Mortuary after being given an ultimatum by KZN Health MEC Ms Nomagugu Simelane-Zulu to either return to work or risk the implementation of a court order that could lead to their dismissal.
The illegal strike, which began on Friday caused delays in the completion of six autopsies. The reason behind the strike is believed to be because workers were unhappy about the return of a manager who had previously been in charge of the facility. According to a media statement from the MEC, the exact nature of their grievance against the manager was not known, and had not been declared by organised labour.
“Firstly, we would like to apologise to all the families who are now anxious about whether they will be able to bury their loved ones due to the delay caused by the illegal strike. We have activated our contingency measures that will ensure that there is minimum disruption to service delivery,” said Simelane-Zulu.
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“Furthermore, we would like to remind those who are not fulfilling their duties that theirs is an essential service, and that there is a court order in place which prohibits them from embarking on the illegal strike. We don’t want things to get to a point where we enforce that court order. However, if the situation does not change, we will be left with no option. If people don’t do their work in such a sensitive environment, than they will be charged accordingly. We cannot be held to ransom in this manner when families are grieving and urgently need to bury their loved ones, having lost them due to sudden and unexpected death. These delays are causing unnecessary secondary trauma, and we will not allow that to continue. If any person has grievances, they should know that they must follow established labour relations procedures,” she said.
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