Group Five and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) were on Thursday locked in negotiations in a bid to stop the strike at the Moses Mabhida Stadium from spreading to other 2010 stadiums under construction.
NUM national spokesperson Lesiba Seshoka said the two sides had met on Wednesday evening and talks had resumed again on Thursday morning.
”They are negotiating but so far there is nothing meaningful,” he said.
Workers at the Durban stadium downed tools last Wednesday.
NUM is demanding project bonuses of R1 500 a month for each worker and that subcontractors meet minimum wage requirements for the civil engineering sector.
It also wants workers to be allowed to elect a full-time safety compliance worker as they were unhappy with the 15 safety compliance officers provided by the consortium building the stadium.
On Wednesday about 600 construction workers marched to the Durban city hall and handed a memorandum to eThekwini municipal manager Mike Sutcliffe, demanding that city intervene in the dispute.
NUM said in a statement on Wednesday that it had issued notices for secondary strikes to major construction employers involved in the building of 2010 projects. NUM’s actions were in compliance with labour law, it said.
”While Group Five and WBHO repeatedly made statements suggesting an interest in talks in the media, they literally removed the initial offers on the table and refused to bargain further.
”We are convinced, they are just not interested in talks,” said the union’s construction sector coordinator Bhekani Ngcobo on Wednesday.
Ngcobo said that in terms of the impending sympathy strikes, the construction industry could come to a standstill with all 2010 projects grinding to a halt.
NUM national spokesperson Lesiba Seshoka said on Wednesday that notice would also be served on the Bombela consortium building the Gautrain, as well the consortium building Durban’s new King Shaka International Airport. – Sapa