With no end in sight to wage disputes, strikes by both South African Airways — causing flights to be cancelled — and Pick ‘n Pay workers, were due to enter their fourth day on Monday.
South African Airways said it expected the SA Transport and Allied Workers Association (Satawu) and the United Association of SA (Uasa) to respond to its final offer of a five percent increase and a once-off payment of R1 600 by Monday.
The unions wanted an eight percent increase.
”We are still waiting for the unions, they are consulting their members,” said the airline’s spokesperson JJ Tabane said on Sunday evening.
SAA appealed to passengers to postpone travelling with the airline until normal operations resumed.
The strike action has forced SAA to cancel all regional and international flights.
Domestic flights would be assessed on an hourly basis.
Pick ‘n Pay offer ‘more than fair’
Meanwhile, Pick ‘n Pay is engaged in a deadlock over wages for approximately 13 000 of its 32 000 employees.
”Picketing will continue at 9am on Monday,” SA Catering and Allied Workers Union national administrative secretary Lucas Ramatlodhi said.
The retailer was offering its workers an increase of R310 per month or 7,9%, whichever is greater. This was ”more than fair” said chief executive Sean Summers in a statement on Sunday.
Unions are demanding the greater of 12% or R400.
”If you consider not only the offered increase … but also the comprehensive benefits that our employees enjoy, we believe that our employees are amongst the best remunerated in the industry,” Summers said.
He said the company incurred trading losses of around R24-million on Friday, the day the strike started, due to employees erecting barricades and preventing customers from entering stores. – Sapa