South African civil servants launched a national strike on Friday, causing turmoil in some hospitals and emptying classrooms as unions demanded a hefty wage hike from the government.
Police fired stun grenades at picketing workers outside Cape Town’s Tygerberg Hospital, injuring at least one person, as many nurses across the country defied a government ban on job stayaways by essential workers, the South African Broadcasting Corporation reported.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), which had called on 700 000 public workers to strike, said the early turnout was a success but in some areas of the country teachers and nurses showed up for work as normal, making the impact hard to gauge.
”Reports so far indicate a very, very good turnout,” said Cosatu spokesperson Patrick Craven.
Cosatu, which represents about 60% of the nation’s nearly one million public servants, had aimed to shut down most public services in a wage dispute with government.
Labour anger was stoked recently by an official body’s recommendation that President Thabo Mbeki receive a 57% pay rise. Unions have demanded a 12% increase, while the government has proposed 6%.
”Fifty-seven percent for fat cats and 6% for poor hard workers. Shame on you,” one placard brandished by a picketer at the Johannesburg Hospital said.
The government, seeking to keep a lid on inflation, boosted its offer on Wednesday to a 6,5% to 9% increase, but talks have been acrimonious.
The government issued a statement reminding essential workers such as firemen, police officers and doctors that they were barred from striking and a court order banned immigration officers from joining the action.
”No essential service employee may embark on any industrial action,” the Public Service and Administration Ministry said.
But hospitals appeared particularly hard hit by the strike, with nurses and cleaners picketing in Johannesburg and Cape Town over salary levels.
”Today is the beginning of the strike. Until they reach an agreement, the hospital is going to run on half-staff,” said union shop steward Danny Losaba at Johannesburg Hospital.
Hospitals, schools hit
About half the 3 000 union members on staff remained on the job to cover essential services while half were on strike, he said, but some patients said care had all but ground to a halt.
”We haven’t had any food or medication this morning,” one dishevelled patient said as she stood in a hospital gown and bare feet in a lobby looking for food.
Local news reports said patients were being turned away from a number of hospitals around the country.
While schools were open in some parts of the country, in many other areas teachers and students failed to show up.
”There is absolutely no teaching going on,” said Principal Toyer Arnold of the Belgravia High School on the Cape Flats outside of Cape Town, where 80% of staff stayed away.
”I don’t think the [proposed] increases by government have kept pace with inflation … it’s extremely difficult for teachers to keep their heads above water.”
At Cape Town’s Groote Schuur Hospital, picketers appeared to mainly be from the cleaning staff, with many nurses showing up for duty, the South African Press Association said.
”They live in luxury, we still stay in poverty,” cleaner Flora Simakuhle said, referring to politicians. Simakuhle said she earned R2 400 a month.
Airport officials said operations at the country’s three main international airport were running smoothly, although they said some immigration officers were not aware of the court order banning them from striking and had not reported for duty.
Mass marches were scheduled for later in the day. — Reuters