A possible tools-down and complete disruption in service delivery is looming, if demands from members of the South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) are not met.
This is according to employees in the technical department who have had enough of the Msukaligwa’s municipal management.
The employees recently staged a sit-in at the municipal offices where they demanded that management respond to their grievances and demands.
A list of grievances was handed to the municipal management. It included issues relating to safety, overtime, standby duty and staff shortages.
According to the employees, they have been without uniforms, safety protective gear and relevant safety tools for the past three years, while the majority of their vehicles are not roadworthy and their safety is not prioritised.
“Personnel cannot be transported with tools on the back of vehicles. We don’t have material at our stores and that negatively affects productivity and delivery of service,”said one of the employees.
It is further alleged that employees are exposed to unhygienic conditions where they have to pick up refuse such as used nappies and condoms with their bare hands, as they do not have gloves.
According to the employees, the municipality has been without an Occupational and Health Safety Officer for more than three years.
The municipality is also accused of not compensating the employees according to the hours they have worked. One employee explained that staff and material shortages force them to accumulate more than 100 hours in overtime a month and the municipality only pays them for 40 hours.
The newspaper was also shown some of the vehicles deemed not roadworthy with wires protruding from the tyres, hand-brakes not working properly and some of the gear levers being loose.
Items such as danger and scarcity allowances are also not paid to employees such as artisans, yet other municipalities do.
Another example cited was that in 2004 there were 54 employees in the roads department, but now there are only 16 left, as the municipality does not replace people in positions when they leave and yet the demand is exceeding the supply.
“All we want is for the municipality to do the right thing and get us the manpower we need, get us working material, uniforms and safety equipment and finally pay us for the hours we have worked.
Then more than half of service delivery problems would be solved,” said another employee.The employees also urged the community to play an active role in demanding the service they pay for and hold the municipality to account.
The employees said a series of meetings with management have not been fruitful and if their demands are not met by next Tuesday, they will definitely down tools.
The municipality’s response is being awaited.
