Thousands of members of the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) in Buffalo City in the Eastern Cape are expected to strike this week, the union said on Tuesday.
Samwu provincial secretary Sphiwo Ndunyana said at least 3 000 municipal workers were expected to down tools and march from the North End Stadium to the city hall on Thursday, to hand over a memorandum detailing their concerns to city officials.
The union is demanding that all temporary and casual workers be employed permanently.
”We want to see these workers’ dignity being restored through permanent employment with a better salary and access to benefits such as medical aid and pension funds,” said Ndunyana.
Samwu was also calling for the speedy finalisation of job evaluation.
”Seven years after the old apartheid municipal boundaries were done away with, and municipalities were amalgamated, most workers are still not earning the same and have been left vulnerable,” Ndunyana said.
The union said it was further concerned about the use of millions of rands awarded to tenders to carry out waste-management services. The union said it was unsure what the money was being spent on. — Sapa