Bus strike set to cause chaos across nation

Chaos looms countrywide and thousands of commuters could be left stranded due to the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) members’ national strike from today, due to wage disputes.

Bus services – including Rea Vaya in Johannesburg, eThekwini in Durban, A Re Yeng in Tshwane, and MyCiTi in Cape Town – will be affected. The only bus service which seemingly isn’t affected is Johannesburg’s Metro buses.

Satawu’s spokesperson Zanele Sabela said thousands of workers within all sectors of bus services – including drivers, cleaners, and mechanics – will be picketing at bus depots this morning.

Sabela said the five unions under the South African Bargaining Council, including the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union, Transport and Omnibus Workers Union, National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa and Tirisano Transport and Services Workers Union decided to go on a strike due to the employer associations’ failure to attend their final negotiations meeting yesterday.

These associations include the Commuter Bus Employers Organisation and South African Bus Employers Association.

“The employers did not attend the meeting scheduled for today [Tuesday] because they were angry that we had issued them a 48- hour notice of the strike yesterday, despite agreeing on Friday last week to have talks with them today about the wage disputes.

“So, they didn’t appear in the meeting scheduled for today and we [the five unions] met and decided on how we would go through with the nationwide strike tomorrow,” said Sabela.

Workers are demanding a one-year agreement to a 12% increase, with a raise of the basic minimum wage from R6 070 to R8 000 a month. The employers are offering a three-year agreement, going up to 7.5% in the third year, and insist that the minimum wage remains the same.

Other demands from the major workers’ unions include compensation for sleeping-out while on duty, adjustment of workers’ night shift stipulation and full pay for dual drivers travelling long distances.

Sabela said the strike will last indefinitely.

– jenniffero@citizen.co.za

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