The South African Municipal Workers’ Union has reiterated that workers should be paid their salary increases. Picture: Nigel Sibanda
The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) is calling for the withdrawal of the temporary Tshwane metro administrators.
Samwu Tshwane Regional Secretary Mpho Tladinyane said this was due to deteriorating labour relations in the metro.
“Over a period of time, we noted with serious concern deteriorating labour relations.”
He cited an example when the administrators failed to implement a signed collective agreement earlier this year, which led to a three-week labour dispute between the Tshwane metro and municipal workers.
The labour dispute frustrated residents as service delivery and other services were gradually deteriorating by the day.
Tladinyane said currently there were ‘major challenges’ experienced by workers in the last four weeks, which included, non-payment of salary increase, sabotaging payment of benchmarking payments and unlawful withholding of 7,000 employee salaries.
“Samwu had to lead fierce battles to ensure that collective bargaining is restored and we ensured that workers secured what they deserved.”
“We have noted that these administrators were initially meant to be in Tshwane for three months and beyond that point, it was clear that they had run out of steam, out of breath and started doing obvious mistakes,” said Tladinyane.
He said municipal workers in Tshwane could no longer tolerate the presence of the administrators.
“If there is anything, they have managed to do successful and without fail in the metro is to frustrate workers and make a life for them a living hell.”
Tladinyane said Samwu was calling on the MEC for Cogta in Gauteng, Lebohang Maile to recall these administrators.
“They have failed in the tasks which they had been deployed for.”
This comes also as residents in Pretoria have voiced their frustrations over excessively high municipal bills.
This article first appeared on Rekord and was republished with permission.
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