Municipal staff in Newcastle threaten strike over pay dispute
Municipal staff in Newcastle have threatened to take to the streets over a salary dispute
The South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) says workers belonging to the union haven't received their pay hike for the 2023/24 financial year, which was approved at the bargaining council in 2021.
The three-year agreement included pension fund reforms, a 3.5% salary increase and a once-off non-pensionable cash allowance.
Samwu members voiced their frustrations during a march last week and handed a memorandum of demands over to the municipality.
The Labour Court in June refused to exempt Newcastle from applying the increases.
“We believe we are wasting money by taking it to court and also delaying paying because it’s clear that it’s a winnable case for us,” says the union’s Jabulisiwe Mokoena.
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“Instead of the municipality making plans on how they will pay, they are prolonging making the payments. When you also look at how the municipality is run, money is wasted and they continue with the recruitment process, which raises the question; where are they getting funds for new employees?"
Samwu's asked the city to respond to its grievances by next Wednesday.
