Tshwane faces union backlash over overtime deductions

The City of Tshwane faces the wrath of a labour union should they deduct overtime worked from 2021 to 2024 after implementing a cap on overtime at the beginning of the month and other cost-saving measures.

Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu) regional manager Lynette Burns-Coetzee said they regard the city’s abrupt measures on overtime as an illogical blanket approach.

She said this will not solve the many challenges and scenarios of overtime currently being worked and will ultimately jeopardise service deliver.

Overtime measures won’t solve challenges – union

Burns-Coetzee said the city also told employees that monies will be deducted for overtime worked from 2021 to 2024.

If employees failed to bring the necessary authorisations, the city will start deducting the monies from salaries from next month, she said.

“How is this not unfair? Imatu Tshwane will not hesitate to fight the employer on all these issues as it is the employees who have stepped in and have done the work as a result of various issues plaguing the city.”

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Imatu Tshwane’s attorneys, Tim du Toit Incorporated, communicated Imatu Tshwane’s reservations regarding the city’s approach to the city manager on 15 April.

But since then, no proper response from the city’s attorneys over the various scenarios regarding the working and authorising of overtime have been received.

Burns-Coetzee said although the union was a signatory to the “collective agreement on overtime” and confirmed that this should be implemented and effectively managed, the city has lost all touch with reality and failed to consider the practical issues currently being experienced in various departments in the city.

‘The city has lost all touch with reality’

“The city reactively stepped in and tried in one foul sweep to correct the auditor-general’s queries regarding overtime since 2021. The city failed to consider what is happening on the ground and with its employees,” she added.

Burns-Coetzee said there were currently inadequate numbers of staff members in certain departments – such as electricity – to provide services because vacant positions are not filled.

“This resulted in employees having to work more than the maximum allowed overtime to ensure that service delivery is not compromised,” she said.

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“These employees have been constantly adding their value to the city by working overtime, albeit in excess of the allowed maximum per employee. They are now being prejudiced for working this overtime which has supposedly not been authorised or approved.

“The teams on the ground report that if you are on standby for four weeks in a month, it is only obvious that you will extend the allowed hours of overtime to be worked.

“However, if your supervisor puts you on the standby roster for these four weeks in a month and sends you to various jobs on standby every night, you, as an employee, assume the supervisor has the necessary authority to send you on such overtime work.

Service delivery will be jeopardised

“You do not question your supervisor as you take it that they have already secured the necessary authorisation for you and your team to work.”

Burns-Coetzee said the city’s residents will suffer as the work will not get done and service delivery will be jeopardised.

The city had yet to comment by the time of publication.

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