The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) on Thursday called for a total boycott of Shoprite Checkers stores around the country.
Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi made the call while addressing striking Shoprite Checkers workers — members of the South African Commercial, Catering and Allied Workers’ Union (Saccawu) — who had gathered at Beyers Naude Square in central Johannesburg.
”Do not set your foot anywhere near a Shoprite store. Show solidarity against the capitalist system. We call on a total boycott of Shoprite Checkers until the strike is over.”
Vavi said he saluted the strikers for their unity, discipline and determination.
”In my view and that of Cosatu your strike is a very important stance of workers. It sets to expose the brutality of the capitalist system.”
The thousands of protesters marched to a Shoprite store on Eloff Street where they handed over a memorandum to a Shoprite representative.
The workers are demanding a R300 or 10% wage increase with the minimum salary of R2 500 and that the retailer must provide uniforms to part-time workers. Shoprite checkers was offering a R265 pay increase.
”There is no justification in Shoprite Checkers’s position [in] refusing to grant workers a mere R300 or 10% where the lowest paid worker earns just about R900 per month, but at the same time granting the CEO [Whitey Basson] a R59-million package in the 2005 financial year,” said Saccawu in a memorandum.
”The CEO’s package could pay the salary of 65 555 of such workers.”
Saccawu demanded that Shoprite Checkers conclude a collective agreement, envisaged by the Labour Relations Act, with the union.
”We demand Shoprite Checkers cease the imposed late trading in all branches, refrain from practising bully-boy tactics and cease with immediate effect the discriminative practices that are influenced by apartheid-style divide and rule,” said the memorandum.
The workers also demanded that the retailer refrain from misleading stakeholders and collaborating with police in the arrests of their members.
”We condemn the conduct of the company, the company’s collusion with some corrupt elements within the South African Police Service and the notoriously barbaric and brutal Red Ants, who are hell-bent in their resolve to crush the strike to an extent of assaulting pickets.”
The memorandum was received by Gauteng division manager Andrew Gardner.
”I have received your memorandum. I will forward it to the group human resources director,” he told workers.
Shoprite Checkers was given a 48-hour ultimatum to respond, ”failing which our consumer boycott will be intensified and extended to other organs of civil society”, Saccawu said.
Thousands of striking Shoprite workers sang and blew vuvuzelas outside a store in Eloff Street.
Red Ants, who carried shields and crowbars, security guards and police barred the entrance.
Cosatu, the South African Communist Party and National Union of Mineworkers representatives briefly addressed workers and expressed their support for the strike.
Cosatu deputy secretary general Bheki Ntshalintshali demanded that the retailer return to negotiations and respond to workers’ demands. He said the Department of Labour should intervene.
Workers have been on strike since the beginning of August when negotiations deadlocked.
Shoprite Checkers declined to comment telephonically on Thursday. — Sapa