A strike by several thousand Transnet workers continued on Tuesday to protest restructuring plans at the parastatal, a union spokesperson said.
”We are definitely continuing in KwaZulu-Natal. In the Free State, the strike was scheduled only for one day, but some will continue today,” United Transport and Allied Trade Union (Utatu) spokesperson Chris de Vos said.
He said ”many thousands” of workers would join the strike, with expectations that 80% of workers would stay away in KwaZulu-Natal. Protest action in the Free State was expected to be ”a lot quieter”.
A meeting on Monday afternoon with Transnet management in Johannesburg had left unions ”greatly disappointed”, De Vos said. ”They continue with their arrogant style of management.”
Transnet will meet unions again on Thursday after considering their proposals.
The strike had left the Richards Bay and Durban ports running at 65% capacity on Monday.
Metrorail spokesperson Thandi Mlangeni said trains in Durban were running at 32% capacity on Tuesday morning. Forty-seven buses had been put in place to ferry commuters to their destinations.
Despite this measure, there was still overcrowding on the trains as commuters continued to use the system.
”We urge commuters to use other forms of transport,” Mlangeni said. — Sapa