Publications
Partners
In the fourth week of the bus strike, unions have accepted a wage increase offer but the strike is not over yet.
National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) general secretary Irvin Jim said the unions had accepted the offer of a 9% wage increase for the first year and 8% increase for the second year but they could not agree on when this increase should come into effect.
On Thursday, the unions made up of Numsa, South African Transport and Allied Workers Union, Transport and Allied Workers’ Union of South Africa, Tirisano Transport Workers Union and Transport and Omnibus Workers Union announced that they met with the employers, who presented this offer to them.
After consulting with their members Jim said their members had agreed to the new offer but faced a “sticky issue” with the back pay.
Irvin said the majority of union members are adamant that they should receive back pay from April 1.
“The difficulty we’re confronted with now is the difficulty of us being plunged by employers, in that traditionally in this sector once there is a settlement employers would agree to backdate such an increase from the first of April in this case,” said Jim.
He said the unions had asked the employers to consider the back pay and the employers were still deliberating this point.
He said a task team would deal with the rest of the unions’ demands, which included night shift allowances, dual drivers and insourcing.
“Today we were supposed to announce an end [to] this strike, however we are not in a position to do so,” he said.
“As unions in the sector we reject the attitude of the employers regarding the effective date of the agreement. We believe that they are provoking our members unnecessarily.
“We want to end the strike because we recognise that it is in the best interests of our members and the community at large,” said the unions in a joint statement.
The unions said they will continue talks with the employers in an attempt to find an “amicable outcome”.
