Pathologists back at work following two-week go-slow
The strike ended after discussions between the Department of Health, the employees and their union resulted in an agreement.
POLOKWANE – As a result of the go-slow a backlog was created with the issuing of some death certificates which led to many families being unable to make funeral arrangements for their loved ones.
Read more: Delay in death reports as pathology strike continues
Department of Health Spokesperson, Derick Kganyago, didn’t want to go into detail about the discussion but he confirmed the strike had come to an end and services have returned to normal.
BONUS reported about the matter two weeks ago that forensic assistants said they stopped doing work they were not qualified to do which resulted in the go-slow and backlog.
Read more: Pathologists down tools at Pietersburg Provincial Hospital
The employees alleged they had received no accreditation nor recognition for work they have done for several years. “We have been doing this work for more than 10 years and have never been given the recognition or pay for the work and we want the qualifications to show for our work of the past years,” one of the forensic assistants, who wished to remain anonymous due to fear of vindication, told BONUS.
Since the start of the go-slow there was a short halt when an agreement was reached between the workers’ union and the department, but the go-slow restarted when employees were unhappy with the terms of the agreement.
One of the employees who spoke to BONUS on condition of anonymity said after the initial discussions was not to the satisfaction of the employees they found legal representation to help them voice their grievances and have their terms met after the union failed to do so.
