MBOMBELA – Employees of the provincial Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport (DPWRT) continue to picket their employer for their performance bonuses.
The department had previously denied rumours of employees in the government complex striking over not receiving their incentives. They are in fact not striking, but they have been taking two hours of their working day to stand outside their offices to picket.
Personnel who wanted to remain anonymous to avoid victimisation told Lowvelder last week while staging their protest outside their offices in the Riverside Government Complex that the MEC, newly appointed Ms Dumisile Nhlengethwa, was ignoring their pleas. “The MEC has not signed off on our annual performance bonuses and she refuses to meet with us about it.”
The department had previously denied that its employees had gone on strike about them not receiving their incentives. Mr David Nkambule, spokesman for DPWRT, had said labour unions were briefing their members over the payment of performance bonuses. The picketing workers said various unions were involved in the protest action.
Nkambule denied that Nhlengethwa has refused to sign off the performance bonuses, adding that the matter is not yet concluded. “The MEC has held a number of meetings with Nehawu on this matter.”
