samwu


Massive municipal strike coming

Thursday, August 4, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

More than 200 000 water, sanitation and refuse workers plan a wage strike in the coming days that could disrupt services in major cities, their union said on Wednesday.

Previous Samwu strikes have led to garbage piling up in city streets. Photo courtesy of The New Age.

The planned strike by the SA Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) is the latest in a series of work stoppages that have slowed commerce and raised worries about growth.

Samwu said in a statement the employers’ “failure to meet the legitimate demand of the workers and their failure to improve on their previous offer at conciliation today leaves the union with no choice but to engage in industrial action”.

No date has been set for the strike.

Employers have offered 6.8% wage increases, while the union wants 18% – nearly four times the inflation rate.

Previous Samwu strikes have led to garbage piling up in city streets and slower repairs of broken water pipes, irritating residents in urban areas.

In other labour disputes, unionised gold and coal workers reached deals this week for 7.5% to 10% wage hikes to end strikes that dented mining output.

Credit to: News 24

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Samwu takes on illegal promotions

Monday, July 25, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

The South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) is cracking the whip in Mpumalanga municipalities where municipal staff members were irregularly transferred to higher-paying positions.

Samwu provincial secretary Kgokedi Mphahlele said there was a trend in almost all Mpumalanga municipalities of officials being transferred to higher posts without them being advertised.

“We have managed to reverse [the appointment of] four municipal officials in the Steve Tshwete local municipality who were transferred to high and lucrative positions which were not advertised. The officials had also not applied for the posts,” said Mphahlele.

He said the four officials included two drivers, a personal assistant and a secretary.

Mphahlele said the four, who are Samwu members, agreed to go back to their former posts.

He said Samwu was now focusing on other municipalities, including Thembisile Hani in Kwaggafontein, Nkomazi in Malalane, Mbombela and Bushbuckridge, adding that the union had raised the matter with Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Madala Masuku and some ANC structures.

“We are awaiting their response,” said Mphahlele.

He warned that Samwu would insist on legal action being taken where necessary, as corruption had gotten to a point where whistleblowers were being threatened.

“We have also learnt that municipal managers are afraid to report these illegal acts because they believe they might lose their jobs as the people behind this claim to be politically connected in the province,” said Mphahlele.

ANC provincial spokesperson Paul Mbenyane was not aware of Samwu’s allegations and referred questions to Masuku’s office.

“An issue of this nature should be dealt with by the department, unless we are told to intervene,” said Mbenyane.

Masuku’s spokesperson, Simphiwe Kunene, could not be reached for comment.

Credit to: News 24

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Info bill will make corruption easier- Samwu

Monday, June 6, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

The protection of information bill in its current state will make corruption within government easier, the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) said.

“We wholeheartedly endorse the position of our federation, the Congress of SA Trade Unions, in criticising the current state of the protection of information bill,” Samwu spokesperson Tahir Sema said in a statement.

Numerous organisations and individuals have criticised the special committee on the bill, accusing it of trying to rush the proposed legislation through Parliament in its present form.

“We are also alarmed that the ANC parliamentary caucus is using its majority to ensure that no significant improvements and safeguards against abuse of the bill are being taken into consideration,” Sema said.

“If the protection of information bill goes ahead, it will not only enable a whole range of municipal documents to be classified as secret, but will also serve to protect those who are misusing their positions for private and nefarious gain,” he said.

Sema said that once information was classified, anyone found in possession of it would be liable for prosecution.

“In other words, if a municipal employee discovers corruption taking place and seeks to report the matter, they will not only be deemed to have exceeded their powers, but could be dismissed, and if they publicly disclose the documents can be prosecuted [leading to] whistleblowers and concerned citizens [being] criminalised,” he said.

“If this bill is passed in its current form, there are likely to be more service delivery protests, not less. There is likely to be more corruption, not less, and there is likely to be more disenchantment with our democratic society and its institutions.”

Sema said the bill was ill-considered and undermined parts of the country’s Constitution.
“Section 32 of the Constitution states that everyone has the right of access to (a) any information held by the state and (b) any information that is held by another person and that is required for the exercise or protection of any rights.

“Furthermore, Section 16 states that everyone has the right to freedom of expression, which includes freedom of the press and other media,” he said.

“In the interests of our democracy and the freedom of our people to access information and use it to ensure that their rights are protected, this bill must be stopped in its tracks.

“The parliamentary caucus must stop and listen to what civil society is saying, and engage them to find a democratic solution to the challenges they believe the current and inappropriate bill will address.

“Failure to do so will be a serious disservice to the people of this country,” Sema said.

Credit to: News 24 and Sapa

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Samwu down tools in Friday

Monday, May 9, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

Members of SA Municipal Workers Unions (Samwu) will embark on a national strike on Friday following a deadlock on wage negotiations among other issues, The New Age newspaper reported on Monday.

Samwu, that has 220 000 members working for municipalities across the country, said its members would strike to force government to meet its demands.

Workers are demanding an 18% wage increase.

They will down tools on Friday, five days before the local government elections.

They are also demanding that President Jacob Zuma not sign into law the Municipal Amendment Bill. The bill is intended to depoliticise municipalities and ensure that they appoint skilled people.

It also demands that Zuma fire Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Siceclo Shiceka and that provincial governments be scrapped.

Credit to: Fin 24

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Mass municipal strike coming

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Mass municipal strike coming

Thursday, April 21, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

The South African Municipal Workers Union on Wednesday announced its members would go on a nationwide strike in May.

A previous municipal strike. Photo courtesy of SABC News.

Spokesperson for the union Tahir Sema said they decided to embark on the strike due to “a number of issues nationally, affecting the union and its membership”.

The strike would start in the Free State on May 10 and Gauteng May 11 as they were “hot spot provinces”. National action was planned for May 13 and then it would spread to the North West on May 27 and Mpumalanga on May 31.

In a statement he said the union confirmed its support for the ANC in the upcoming local government elections.

“The programme of action … is not in any way intended to disrupt the upcoming local government elections and will ensure we respect citizens’ rights to participate in the elections.”

He said the protest would continue until the problems raised were resolved.

During the strike members planned to march and deliver memorandums to Gauteng MEC for co-operative governance and traditional affairs, the South African Local Government Association, the Free State premier, the ministers of labour, public enterprises and justice and the presidency.

Problems raised by Samwu included “attacks” on workers and union leaders as well as “political dismissals”, the privatisation of public services and assets, and the transfer of services from local to provincial government.

The union wants the president not to sign the Municipal Systems Amendment Bill into law, and remove provincial government from the Constitution. It wants limitations on workers’ rights to strike removed from statutes, an end to labour brokers and corruption and Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Sicelo Shiceka dismissed, if the allegations against him were true. It also raised its concerns about police brutality.

“These mass actions will be used to name and shame the beneficiaries of corruption within the public sector and the private sector.”

Credit to: News 24

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Pikitup and city backs out of agreement

Friday, April 15, 2011 1 Comment by Zelda

Heaps of rubbish is piling up all over Johannesburg and the stench is becoming unbearable.

The face of Johannesburg.

Yet Pikitup and the City of Johannesburg backed out of an agreement they reached with Samwu last Friday.

The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) said earlier in the week that it had accepted the City of Johannesburg’s and Pikitup’s minimum wage offer of R6 609 to end a refuse-worker strike, but apparently Joburg mayor Amos Masondo had interfered in the process to ensure that Pikitup management did not sign the agreement.

Refuse workers based at waste-management agency Pikitup went on strike more than a week ago demanding that an investigation be commissioned into allegations of corruption worth millions related to tender fraud.

The workers were also asking to level pay disparities so that there would be a minimum wage of R6 609.

Samwu held a press conference on Wednesday afternoon to air two issues.

One, that Masondo was a spanner in the works of a wage agreement being signed between Pikitup and the union, and two, that a meeting of an investigation task team that was set up to tackle corruption and nepotism did not take place on Tuesday as planned.

“All we want is for the city management and Pikitup to sign the proposals that had been tabled on Friday; the strike will then be called off.

Workers are happy with the proposals that were made on Friday and have accepted the offer,” said Menzi Luthuli, Samwu’s Gauteng provincial organiser.

But he added: “We cannot understand why both the City of Johannesburg and Pikitup have backed out of signing the agreement that the parties have reached and why they have not commissioned the investigation task team. We are willing to call off the strike and are waiting at the negotiating table …”

Gabu Tugwana, director for communications in the mayor’s office, could not be reached for comment.

At the time of publishing, Pikitup CEO Zingisile Ntsaluba was not available for comment on whether the mayor was interfering in the process and what was happening to the investigation into corruption and nepotism.

Meanwhile, this week all the Pikitup board members, except one, resigned. Tahir Sema, Samwu’s spokesperson, said that that while the resignations were a step in the right direction, the union had no intention of forging ahead with wanting an investigation — it has handed documents showing alleged corruption to the Special Investigation Unit and to the Hawks.

Credit to: Mail and Guardian

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Pikitup on full-blown strike

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Pikitup workers face legal action

Tuesday, April 12, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

The SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu), representing striking Pikitup workers, may face legal action, a City of Johannesburg spokesman said on Tuesday.

“The health of the city is at risk, we can’t allow that to happen,” City spokesman Gabu Tugwana said.

He said the city earlier approached the Labour Court, and all necessary documentation had been filed.

“We hope the court gets back to us as soon as today or tomorrow,” he said.

The city gave workers until Tuesday morning to get back to work as it felt that it had addressed workers’ demands during talks at the weekend.

Tugwana said the SA Local Government Bargaining Council had granted permission to strike based on four demands, which had been addressed in the talks.

Additional services had been hired to help reduce the accumulating piles of rubbish, “even though the city did not have money to throw around”, Tugwana said.

“One week [of strikes] is one week too long… these kinds of things attract rats and so forth.”

Additional services were working in phases around the city and there was some kind of progress in the Roodepoort area, he said.

Garden and landfill sites had extended their operating hours.

Striking workers were demanding, among other things, an internal investigation into alleged corruption and irregular tenders at the company.

Refuse collection workers embarked on a strike on Thursday.

Samwu spokesman Tahir Sema said the union was informed of the city’s legal intention, but said they had no legal grounds to stand on.

Sema said workers were not back at work as they still had to be presented with the proposals from the city, and would have to indicate if they accepted or rejected them.

“This takes a few days, [the process] works via a mandate. There’s nothing much we can do.”

He said the city did not understand that the union needed to explain the proposals to its members in various languages.

“This process takes time. We are not in breach of anything, we did indicate that we are happy,” Sema said.

Workers would be addressed in Joubert Park later on Tuesday.

“Should they agree on the city’s proposal, they will be back at work tomorrow [Wednesday].”

The following landfill sites would accept domestic refuse free of charge:
- Goudkoppies, Houthammer Road, Devland,
- Marie Louise, Dobsonville Road, Roodepoort,
- Robinson Deep, Turffontein Road, Turffontein,
- Ennerdale, Old Lawley Road, Lawley.

Credit to: Times Live

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Pikitup strike continues

No end in sight for refuse strike

Pikitup on full-blown strike

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No end in sight for refuse strike

Friday, April 8, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

Johannesburg residents will have to handle their own refuse for now as there is no end in sight to the strike that has left a stink over the city.

Pikitup spokesman Pansy Oyedele asked residents Thursday to take their rubbish to the city’s four dumping sites.

“The primary objective of Pikitup is to ensure the earliest possible resumption of refuse removal services in the interest of Johannesburg residents and businesses,” said Oyedele.
She could not say when the strike would end.

Pikitup refuse collection workers began a series of protests yesterday from Joubert Park, Johannesburg, to their Selby depot, protesting at Pikitup management “corruption and nepotism”.

South African Municipal Workers’ Union spokesman Tahir Sema said the workers were unhappy about “corruption and irregular tenders that were awarded”.

Sema demanded the suspension of the company’s MD. “We are also demanding that management look into wage disparities,” he said. The protests would go on indefinitely.

Samwu discussed its concerns with the Johannesburg city manager, Mavela Dlamini.

The unions yesterday prohibited strikers from speaking to the media.

However, one protester, who asked to remain anonymous, passionately described his feelings about Pikitup management. “People get more than you and we work the same job, how would you feel? That’s why we are here,” he said.

“If we don’t cry, we don’t get anything.”

Credit to: News 24

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Pikitup on full-blown strike

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Pikitup on full-blown strike

Thursday, April 7, 2011 1 Comment by Zelda

Johannesburg’s refuse collectors, employed by waste-management agency Pikitup, began a full-blown strike on Thursday morning, the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) said.

Spokesperson Tahir Sema said about 2 000 workers were busy gathering for a meeting on the first day of the strike.

He could not immediately confirm the meeting point. However, Johannesburg metro police spokesperson Chief Superintendent Wayne Minnaar said that workers were expected to gather in Joubert Park.

Pikitup received the strike notice earlier this week after workers embarked on a go-slow in certain areas.

Workers have accused Pikitup of being “riddled with corruption”, and of refusing to address workers’ legitimate concerns.

“Workers are concerned about the department and would want for Pikitup to be free from corruption and nepotism,” Sema said.

Other disputes were around wage disparities and the intimidation of union members.

Sema said most Pikitup employees were union members.

Pikitup spokesperson Pansy Oyedele said on Wednesday that the company tried everything in its power to reach an agreement with Samwu.

She said that management met with Samwu on Wednesday to try to find a way forward.

However, Sema said Samwu repeatedly made calls for an urgent meeting with Pikitup, to no avail.

“Management has refused to meet with us,” he said.

Meanwhile, Pikitup asked residents who do not have their rubbish collected during the strike to be patient, and to keep it inside their yards for the time being.

“… We are asking residents who do not have their waste collected to please keep it inside their yard and be patient,” Oyedele said.

People with the capacity could take general waste to the four landfill sites that would also remain open, Oyedele said.

These sites are: Goudkoppies in Houthammer Road, Devland; Marie Louise in Dobsonville Road, Roodepoort; Robinson Deep in Turffontein Road, Turffontein; and Ennerdale in Old Lawley Road, Lawley.

Pikitup’s garden sites will remain open during the strike, but only for garden waste and not general domestic refuse.

Oyedele could not detail contingency plans in the event of an extended strike.

Credit to: Mail & Guardian and Sapa

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Samwu strike: ‘ANC will not be blackmailed’

Wednesday, March 16, 2011 No Comments by Zelda

The ANC will not allow trade unions to blackmail it with strike action and threats in the run-up to May’s local government elections, the party’s Gauteng provincial secretary, David Makhura, warned.

“The ANC will not be blackmailed to intervene in labour relations issues in municipalities simply because of a threat that (municipal union) Samwu members will not vote for the movement,” Makhura told journalists in Johannesburg on Tuesday.

The ANC, alliance partner Cosatu and its affiliate, the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu), have had a series of meetings since Samwu declared last week it would not campaign for the ANC if a range of demands were not met.

Municipal strikes in metros such as Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane, including a four-week-long strike by Metrobus drivers over changes to shift rosters, have also seen the dismissal of hundreds of workers.

Makhura said the municipal strikes had “become a bargaining strategy of Samwu in the run-up to every election”.

He said that, while the ANC respected the right of these workers to strike, and had asked its mayors not to victimise workers, “workers must respect internal processes of municipalities and not rush to the ANC and the alliance to intervene on labour relations matters”.

Samwu earlier criticised the ANC’s elections manifesto as not addressing workers’ needs, but ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe pointed out that the manifesto had been adopted by all alliance partners, including Cosatu.

Samwu general secretary Mthandeki Nhlapo said the union had met with Cosatu on Monday and that “engagements are still continuing” until at least tomorrow.

He said the meeting with Cosatu was aimed at talks with the ANC to discuss Samwu’s grievances.

“(Samwu and Cosatu) are finalising our approach to meet with the ANC and we hope the issues will be resolved,” Nhlapo said.

He denied the union threatened to withhold votes from the ANC.

“What we said is that it will be impossible to campaign for the ANC if things continued the way they are,” he said.

Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi refused to divulge details of the talks with Samwu, saying it was a closed meeting.

He confirmed, however, that Samwu would not “boycott” the elections, nor would its members refuse to vote for the ANC.

“But we are proceeding to address the concerns they have,” he said, adding that many of the meetings were taking place at regional level.

Vavi, however, said he disagreed with Makhura’s assertion that the union’s action was blackmail.

“I don’t think it is about blackmail.

“The issues are genuine and there are concerns about (alliance) relationships that have collapsed,” he said.

Meanwhile, as the DA announced its mayoral candidates for Johannesburg and Tshwane yesterday, Makhura said the ANC in Gauteng was ready for the elections, but would only choose its mayoral contenders later.

Credit to: Independent Online

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