Nearly 20% of Jozi firefighters still suspended, on partial pay

Nearly 20% of Johannesburg’s firefighters were in their fifth week of suspension with partial pay, when they appeared at the Labour Court yesterday.

The more than 200 workers, mostly members of trade union Demawusa, challenged their suspension, contending that it was unlawful and unfair. They were also challenging the Emergency Management Services’ (EMS) decision to partially pay their salaries, stating it was against the collective agreement of the Bargaining Council.

EMS’s legal team was relying on a Constitutional Court ruling that the Labour Court did not have the jurisdiction to rule on whether a suspension was unlawful.

EMS argued the dispute between the parties as covered under the Labour Relations Act could be resolved through other means, but not the court.

Demawusa’s attorney Solly Mosemola hit back with a slew of judgments supporting his argument. He said the firefighters’ refusal to attend callouts over the alleged non-assignment of supervisors did not constitute a strike, because the workers were simply refusing to break the law.

Members of Demawusa, some part of the team which lost three of its members in the Bank of Lisbon fire last year, have been complaining that EMS operations were routinely flouting the regulations of the Health Professionals Council of South Africa (HPCSA) by allowing EMS workers with basic life support skills to attend emergencies without a supervisor.

EMS believed this was an incorrect interpretation of the regulations and the employer was adamant there was no breach of regulations.

The firefighters believed elements of the Health Act were also being violated.

EMS spokesperson Nana Radebe said she could not discuss the case, including how EMS was coping without the suspended workers.

Judgment was reserved on both the workers’ bid to have the court rule on the fairness of their suspension and the employer’s bid to have the court declare that the worker’s actions before their suspensions constituted a strike.

A date for the rulings would be communicated at a later stage.

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