All the fuel industry workers who were on strike over the last week would return to work on Tuesday after accepting an 8,5% wage increase, their union said.
”We hope that at least by the afternoon shift everybody would have gone back to work,” Keith Jacobs, spokesperson for the Chemical, Energy, Paper, Printing, Wood, and Allied Workers’ Union (Ceppwawu), told the South African Press Association (Sapa).
The strike closed two refineries. Filling stations around the country, particularly in Gauteng, ran dry as oil companies struggled to get supplies past picket lines and into petrol pumps. The situation was made worse by panic buying.
PetroSA said specialised teams had already begun urgent work on restarting the Mossel Bay refinery, which produces about 7% of the country’s fuel, after it closed last week when 150 critical staff downed tools.
”We expect the plant to be fully functional within the next three to four days,” said PetroSA vice-president of operations Dan Marokane.
The Sapref refinery would take about the same time to become fully functional again.
BP had expected an end to the strike on Monday and had communicated a contingency plan to employees for when the deal was struck, while Engen said it was trying to catch up and close gaps left when companies could not get fuel out of its depots, especially in Gauteng.
Settlement
According to Jacobs, the agreement includes an 8,5% increase backdated to July 1, provides for the formation of a task team to discuss unresolved maternity leave concerns, and includes a remuneration agreement for employees who work 24-hour shifts.
The settlement was 1,5% points lower than the union’s starting demand of 10% but, said Jacobs, ending the strike had become important.
”Yesterday [Monday] it was extremely difficult to go to members and sell a compromise to them but we had to do it in the interests of the public. We didn’t want a strike that had been extremely disciplined to turn ugly. The potential was there if it went on for longer and we are talking about a product that is highly flammable,” said Jacobs.”
Intervention by Minerals and Energy Affairs Minister Buyelwa Sonjica, who had originally resolved not to become involved to avoid setting a precedent, had helped speed up negotiations by helping bring forward a meeting planned for Monday to Saturday, said Jacobs.
”It was very welcome.”
Sonjica’s spokesperson Sputnik Ratau said when the department heard the parties were going to meet on Monday they decided that because there was already an intention to meet, they would try to get them to meet earlier.
”Both parties were willing,” said Ratau.
”As the Department of Minerals and Energy, we are, like the whole country, relieved and happy that the two parties have found each other.
The settlement received was good for both of them,” Ratau told Sapa.
Strike action
However, Jacobs said there was a concern about public comments on radio talk shows that the petrol sector could become classified as an essential service, which could limit future grievance expression avenues.
”We are not dealing with a hospital, we are dealing with serious multinationals, said Jacobs. ”We must live with the fact that strike action is an important part of our Constitution.”
Ratau said the issue was not in the pipeline for the department.
”It’s not something we are talking about… but if it was, there would be very vast and serious consultations.”
”This outcome can only be in the best interests of the country,”Rams Ramashia, chairperson of BP and the South African Petroleum Refineries, said on Tuesday morning. – Sapa