Employees of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and the office of the compensation commissioner could go on strike in July, the public service union (PSA) said on Wednesday.
PSA and several other unions’ members were planning ”full-blown strike action” over what they called the Department of Labour’s ”unilateral phase-out of a production bonus scheme”.
Said PSA deputy general manager Manie de Clercq: ”We requested the department to put the decision on hold while alternatives are being negotiated in the departmental bargaining chamber but it was not prepared to put the decision on hold or to reverse it.”
He said the department has shown no commitment in resolving the matter.
”This unilateral action by the department is repugnant to our labour laws and should be condemned in the strongest possible terms,” De Clercq said
He said unions were geared to embark on full-blown strike action if the dispute remained unresolved after reconciliation procedures scheduled for July 6.
Mokgadi Pela, spokesperson for the department, could not supply immediate reaction to the PSA’s statement. — Sapa