Profit share dispute spurs Numsa picket at Ford SA

Voetsek Ford, chanted members from Numsa gathered at the gates of Ford Company South Africa with flags to picket after failing to reach an agreement at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) over profit share bonuses.

Workers, who agreed to speak anonymously, said the strike was likely to continue until next week.

Non-striking workers stood across the road and watched colleagues sing struggle songs with many saying they didn’t want to get involved.

Other workers said they were intimidated not to speak to the media and did not want to disclose whether it was by the union or the company.

Workers don’t share in profits

Economist Dawie Roodt said workers as a rule don’t share in profits.

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“Workers don’t share in profits because they don’t share in the losses. If these workers insist on getting profits they must also agree to share in the losses of a company, that’s why workers as a rule don’t share in profit,” he said.

Roodt said there were countries in the world that shared profit, but they were far and few.

“That’s the difference between a worker and an investor. The investor risks his capital while the worker doesn’t. So, when businesses make profits, workers usually want to share in the profits but when a company runs at a loss they are not willing to take salary cuts or losses,” he said.

Roodt said it was purely opportunistic by the labour union.

Ford requests non-striking employees to work from home

Ford SA spokesperson Duduzile Nxele said the company requested non-striking employees to work from home.

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“Ford has a long-term commitment to South Africa and has invested heavily in its operations and local employees. Regrettably, production disruptions have a profound impact on South Africa’s economy and global reputation as a place to do business.”