Johannesburg Metrobus workers will strike on Monday over the encashment of accumulated sick leave, the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) said on Thursday.
This will leave tens of thousands of workers, pupils and students in the city stranded, warned Samwu branch secretary Dumisani Langa.
He said workers were told in 2005 that they stood to lose sick leave accumulated over 15 years if it was not taken within 30 days.
”We don’t decide when to fall sick, and obviously the employer didn’t think properly before giving workers a month only,” said Langa.
The union asked that workers be paid out and cancelled a planned strike in November after talks with Metrobus.
”Management at Metrobus promised to take the matter to the municipality, but never came back to us,” he said. ”We are going on with the action on Monday, because we are dealing with a stubborn employer which promises but never delivers.”
However, Metrobus has claimed that all affected workers who qualified and decided to exercise their right were paid their full benefits in December 2005.
”In terms of an agreement we had with the unions, which Samwu was a part of, any further right to accrued sick leave was relinquished and therefore forfeited,” the company said in a statement.
It suggested that commuters use alternative transport on Monday. — Sapa