Tshwane metro appeals turned-down employees’ salary increase relief application
In January, the Tshwane council voted against an estimated R430-million salary increase for employees citing that its finances could not fund the 3.5% increase and applied for exemption to the South African Local Government Bargaining Council.
The Tshwane municipality has appealed the dismissal of its application to be exempted from a wage collective agreement for the employees’ salary increase for the financial year 2021/222.
In January, the Tshwane council voted against a 3.5% salary increase wage agreement signed by the municipality and worker’s union on September 15, 2021. This would have entailed an estimated R430-million salary increase to employees.
According to Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu) in the court papers the wage increases backdated to July 1, 2021 and for a once-off non-pensionable allowance payable either end December 2021 or March 2022. This was not met by the metro.
In March 8, the municipality applied for exemption of the salary increase to the South African Local Government Bargaining Council (Salga).
Salga detailed in its ruling the application was filed on the eve of an enforcement hearing for the collective wage agreement. The hearing was postponed.
“The timing of the exemption application is notable, considering that for the period September 15, 2021 to March 8, 2022 there has been non-compliance with the collective agreement [increase],” the ruling read.
The council ruling stipulated the metro ignored the collective agreement for months until an enforcement hearing was scheduled.
“The conduct of the City of Tshwane in referring the application to stay the enforcement hearing at the eleventh hour and thus suspending the collective agreement by another 30 days – as the Council has thirty days to set down and finalise the application – shows disregard for the collective agreement and the parties to the council. This conduct is an abuse of the process,” the ruling read.
On Friday, April 8 the council dismissed the metro’s application to halt the salary increase.
Tshwane spokesperson Selby Bokaba said the metro would appeal the ruling on the basis that “the ruling made by the panelist that the City abused the exemption process and that it unduly delayed in filing an exemption application is wrong. The appeal addresses two aspects”.
Bokaba said the collective agreement signed by the union and the municipality in September 2021 did not provide a timeframe within which an exemption application could be lodged.
Meanwhile, the South Africa Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) regional general secretary Mpho Tladinyane said the union was confident that the council in the appeal would again rule in their favour.
“Understanding the current hardships faced by employees and further considering that money is an emotive issue, we hereby call on the City of Tshwane to implement the outcome of the bargaining council without delay and boost the morale of workers,” Samwu leadership said in a statement following the ruling.
“Samwu further commits to assisting the City, like we have been doing, to collect more revenue.”
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