Worker lands in ICU after brutal attack by striking colleagues
At the weekend, the metro said it had “strong” leads on the people who assaulted Dube, adding that they would also be pursuing criminal charges against the perpetrators.
A Tshwane metro electricity department worker had to be taken to the ICU over the weekend after he was brutally attacked allegedly by striking metro workers in Soshanguve Block DD on Sunday.
Benjamin Dube was attending to a power outage in the area when he was attacked, according to Tshwane MMC for Finance Peter Sutton.
“He sustained head and rib injuries and is recovering,” Sutton said.
A few days earlier, Sutton said they had “strong” leads on the people who assaulted Dube, adding that they would also be pursuing criminal charges against the perpetrators.
“We will monitor the processes very closely,” he said.
Dube, not part of the strike, was attacked by people believed to be metro workers who embarked on the illegal strike action last week.
The strike action was allegedly fuelled by a wage dispute.
“Our thoughts are with him and his family as he recovers,” Tshwane mayor Randall Williams said.
Williams added that the metro had since begun the process of issuing notices of the intention to terminate employees who were involved in the strike since its onset on March 15.
“On Tuesday, approximately 19 employees based at the Mayville depot were issued with letters of intention to terminate their services for their continued involvement in the strike,” he said.
The employees, who according to Williams, were presented by the SA Municipal Workers Union, had until Thursday, March 24, to provide written reasons why their services should not be terminated.
Once the employees had made their submissions, the metro would then decide whether or not to terminate their services.
“The vast majority of Tshwane employees are committed to their work and to serving the residents of this city, such that they are willing to place their lives at risk in the face of intimidation, threats or even physical violence against their lives,” he said.
Williams further said that they would not allow the metro’s work to be derailed by small groups of people who sought to prevent their colleagues from carrying out their duties.
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