Tshwane mayor plans to bill Samwu for ‘wasteful costs’ as services affected

Randall Williams said the metro was still quantifying damages and costs incurred as a result of the illegal strike.

“The metro will issue the bill against Samwu for the wasteful costs incurred as a result of this unlawful strike.”

This also comes after the metro secured an interdict against the unlawful Samwu strike action.

Williams said despite this order, Samwu had engaged in continued disruption of work and subsequent interruption of service delivery.

“The metro has properly constituted labour structures where decisions on any labour issues can be deliberated on.

“These structures remain open and should be used optimally to resolve issues instead of resorting to chaos.”

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Williams dubbed the strike actions as “political acts meant to disrupt the work of DA-led Tshwane metro in the run-up to elections”.

Tshwane metro spokesperson, Selby Bokaba, said residents should expect services such as bus operations, licensing, public cleaning and waste collection to likely be affected if the unrest accompanying the strike continued unabated this week.

“Some clinics are also likely to be affected as well, but disruptions would be minimal.

“The metro will take a hardline stance against anyone who violates the court order and will strive to ensure that its customers are not unnecessarily inconvenienced by the unprotected and unlawful strike action as declared by the Labour Court.”

Samwu has been in a tussle with the Tshwane metro for nearly three years, over a benchmarking agreement that was reached between the two parties at the bargaining council, to adjust salaries of workers in line with a category 10 status acquired by the municipality in 2017.

Thousands of municipal workers in Tshwane took to the streets on Thursday, following a stand-off between the union and the municipality over the implementation of the salary increments and a once-off payment linked to the agreement.

Samwu regional secretary Mpho Tladinyane said: “We are disappointed at the conduct of the acting city manager and the mayor at their appetite to reverse gains registered by workers over the years.”

Tladinyane said the “appetite” was evident, noting the recent actions were over the issues of non-payment of annual once-off payment, wage and salary collective agreement implementations and the Tshwane group life scheme.

He said Tshwane and Samwu signed a collective agreement on benchmarking, in which there was a clause stating that all employees on top-notch would be paid an annual one-off payment in place of satisfactory performance.

“The metro has since applied to bargaining council to remove the clause.”

He said the South African local government bargaining (Salga-employer body) signed a collective agreement with both Samwu and another union, Imatu, in September 2021, and after that, the South African local government bargaining council advised municipalities to implement the collective agreement.

“To date, the metro has not communicated when the agreement will be implemented and workers paid their 3.5% backdated to July 2021. Workers are demanding that the 3.5% be implemented on 26 October 2021.”

Tladinyane said the metro established the Tshwane group life scheme in favour of its employees which among others, covered funeral expenses in case of death.

“For three years or more, the scheme did not increase rates paid by the employer and recently due to Covid-19, the number of death cases increased drastically.

“Tshwane representatives on the scheme agreed that rates be increased but the mayoral committee blocked the said increase. As a result of the action benefits paid to employees have been decreased negatively affecting families of departed employees.

“Noting that local government elections will be on November 1, Samwu demands that the current administration resolve all outstanding issues so that we start on a clean slate with the new administration.”

The union gave the metro until October 25, to provide a positive response to employees’ demands.