Nehawu members go on strike in Standerton
The state offered a 4.7% increase but the union demanded between 10% and 12%.
The second day of the public sector strike began in Standerton with members of Nehawu (National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union) protesting at the Department of Education in Kerk Street on March 8.
An overwhelming majority of workers wore a red T-shirt.
The strikers carried the union’s flag all the way to the Jerry van Vuuren Building, from where their next stop was the Gert Sibande College.
The Standerton Advertiser waited for the protestors at the Standerton Hospital on Kruger Street, and the members marched on, with vehicles following them and many fists raised from car windows.
: WATCH: Nehawu demands court officials in Evander to join the strike
According to the president of Nehawu, Mike Shingange, as televised on March 7, the employees are overworked and underpaid.
He said the protected strike is because of a breakdown in salary negotiations.
The state offered a 4.7% increase, while the union demanded between 10% and 12%. According to Shingange, an inflation-related increase is needed.
The newspaper contacted the CEO of the Standerton Hospital, Nhlanhla Dladla, on March 8 and enquired whether the hospital was closed. Dladla confirmed that the hospital is open.
