Emboldened by the successful outcome of their striking colleagues in the construction industry recently, South Africa’s 150,000 municipal workers begin their own three-day work stoppage to demand higher pay on Monday.
Due to this development, security officials in the commercial city of Johannesburg have warned all visitors to the Central Business District (CBD) to avoid driving into the city center between 10 am and 2 pm for fear of running into conflict with the strikers during the marches that are expected to disrupt traffic till Wednesday.
The South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) and workers grouped under the South African Local Government Association, taking the leaf from the industrial action book of construction workers who settled for a 12 percent increase, a come down from the original demand of 13 percent, are hoping for a similar successful outcome by Wednesday.
SAMWU and the Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (IMATU) have both rejected an 11.5 percent wage increase offer.
Due to the strike, there will be no municipal buses to ferry commuters, no garbage collection and the issuing of various purpose licenses during the protests that are expected to bring hardship to residents and commuters in the major cities of Cape Town and Durban, in addition to Johannesburg.
Two weeks ago when the construction workers downed their tools to stage protest dances in the nation’s streets, they managed to ground to a halt all building work in the country, including the construction of the remaining five 2010 FIFA World Cup stadiums.
A week of tough negotiations and a comprise on the demands from both sides led to the end of the crippling construction workers’ strike.
Source African Press Agency
