While unions were reporting all Eastern Cape Transnet employees on strike on Friday, Metrorail maintained that all its critical staff were at their posts and transport services were at 100%.
”By this morning, Port Elizabeth had confirmed that workers in Transwerk and Metrorail had almost totally stayed away and preparations for the march were already under way,” said South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union spokesperson Ronnie Mamba.
However, Metrorail’s Thandi Mlangeni said: ”All our critical workers, like train drivers, did show up for work, so we could supply a 100% service to commuters.”
Transnet management was in talks with the company’s four unions on Friday over their unhappiness at the restructuring of the company .
Earlier in the week, Transnet spokesperson John Dludlu said although the parastatal acknowledges employees’ right to strike, it is unnecessary to strike over restructuring.
”The restructuring process, which includes the transfer and/or sale of our non-core assets to other employers, will not result in job losses, nor will it adversely affect employees’ conditions of employment,” he said.
Striking workers planned to march from Grahamstown Road in Port Elizabeth to the Spoornet offices in Fleming Street to hand over a memorandum of protest against the restructuring of the parastatal on Friday, said Mamba.
United Transport and Allied Trade Union (Utatu) general secretary Chris de Vos said about 3 000 people had gathered to take part in the march by 9am.
There were also 100 strikers gathered in East London by 9am, but the march there might be abandoned because of heavy rain and thunder, said Mamba. — Sapa