THERE was a heavy police presence outside Coastlands Hotel on Umhlanga Rocks Drive last week when more than 40 workers toyi-toyied outside the hotel, demanding a 20 per cent increase in salary as well. The workers also demanded the increase be backdated a year. A similar strike also occurred outside the Coastlands Hotel on Dr Pixley ka Seme (West) Street.
What’s more, striking workers also prevented other staff from the uMhlanga hotel from going to work.
The hotel group’s Sheik Ebrahim said the strike has hurt business, as well the hotel industry as a whole.
“It’s definitely affected business as well as hurt our reputation. Some guests have been intimidated, as was the skeleton staff that we employed. If we were aware of the strike we could have made contingency plans. We have engaged with the union, National Union of
Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA), to negotiate some of the demands raised.
Ebrahim says they explained to the employees that they will revisit their demands after the financial year end, but they grew impatient.
“We did say let’s wait for our financial year end at the end of February so we could negotiate, but they decided to go ahead with the strike. They have also taken their demands to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA). They applied for a protected strike in the CBD, but did not apply for a subsidiary strike outside the uMhlanga hotel, where they prevented staff from entering the building,” he said.
According to Lt Raymond Deokaran, spokesman for the Durban North SAPS, the protest was peaceful.
“We were called in to monitor the situation, and for the most part the protesters were peaceful,” Deokaran said.
