Another round of talks between the South African Local Government Association (Salga) and municipal unions is scheduled to take place on Monday in an attempt to reach a wage agreement and stave off a national strike.
”The bargaining council has responded by arranging another meeting, which will now take place on Monday in Johannesburg at 10am,” said South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) official Dale Forbes on Friday.
Samwu and the Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union are scheduled to embark on a second week of protest action on Monday.
Forbes said Samwu has revised its initial demands and now wants a R3 000 guaranteed minimum wage or an 8% or R350 increase, whichever is the greater.
”We will consider any offer that meets the main thrust of our demands,” said Forbes.
Earlier on Friday, Salga said in a statement that it welcomes the opportunity to engage unions again.
Salga said talks will focus on critical issues such as service delivery, the financial position of local government against the backdrop of labour’s demands, and the conduct of striking municipal workers.
”Even at this late stage, we remain optimistic that the coming talks will result in an amicable solution,” said Salga.
Salga’s offer on the table is a 6% increase for the first year and inflation-linked increases in years two and three. — Sapa