South Africa car manufacturers and trade unions have agreed a deal to avert a strike over wages, the country’s metalworkers’ union said on Sunday.
”We have withdrawn the notice to go on strike,” said Mziwakhe Hlangani, national spokesperson at the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa).
”We are putting the agreement to our members … the shop stewards’ council [says] it is a landmark agreement.”
Under the pact, car manufacturers will pay a 9% wage increase this year and an 8,5% increment next year, as well as improved severance, pension and maternity benefits.
The union said last week it would issue a 48-hour notice for about 15 000 workers to go on strike at eight car producers, unless there was a breakthrough in talks.
”In its deliberations, the meeting confirmed that this was a landmark proposal which covered all aspects that we had put forward as demands to employers,” Numsa said in a statement.
DaimlerChrysler, Volkswagen, BMW, General Motors, Nissan, Ford, Toyota and India’s Tata all make cars in South Africa. They employ 39 000 people.
South Africa has suffered a series of strikes over wages over the past two months in key sectors including at refineries and mines and highlighted by a four-week civil-servant stoppage that crippled state hospitals and schools. — Reuters