/ 25 May 2010

Prasa runs out of patience with union

Prasa will put a 10% salary increase into effect despite the majority union still striking to press for a better offer, a senior official said.

The Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa) will put a 10% salary increase into effect despite the majority union still striking to press for a better offer, a senior official said on Tuesday.

“To put it bluntly, our patience has really run out with Satawu [South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union],” Prasa acting CEO Tumisang Kgaboesele told Sapa.

“We have made the decision to implement the agreement of 10% backdated to the 1st April… it will reflect on salary slips at the end of June.”

This was the second blow this week to labour action by Satawu, whose striking Transnet members were also told that Transnet would unilaterally implement its wage offer of 11%.

Although Satawu was the majority union at Prasa with 6 800 members, Kgaboesele said the 4 000 members of United Transport and Allied Trade Union (Utatu) and those workers who did not belong to unions had accepted the offer.

“We have a majority in law to implement this agreement,” said Kgaboesele.

He blamed Satawu members for the torching of four Metrorail train coaches worth R15-million in Johannesburg on Tuesday morning.

“They were completely destroyed… We think it was a deliberate act and that members of Satawu were involved.”

Satawu was demanding a 13% increase from Prasa.

But Kgaboesele said Prasa made it clear last week that its offer was “full and final”.

“As far as we are concerned, the negotiations are over and done with. As Prasa, we have no intention of opening the negotiations.”

The 10% increase in salaries would be backdated to April 1, maternity leave benefits (four months’ paid maternity leave) would kick in on June 1, the new shift roster system would start on July 1 and the new conditions of service, relating to overtime and allowances, would come into effect on August 1.

But Satawu deputy president Robert Mashego said the members would continue with the strike, which shut down railway services last week and saw skeleton services running this week.

“We will continue to strike until our members tell us we must sign [the offer]… they are implementing an offer we did not accept,” said Mashego.

He said striking Satawu workers were aware of the fact that they would lose money with the “no work, no pay” rule.

“They are accepting the consequences of their fight.”

Mashego blamed commuters for the train fire on Tuesday morning, saying Satawu had warned Prasa that people would get impatient with skeleton services.

Metrorail was only running a 32% service in Gauteng.

He denied involvement by union members in the torching of the coaches.

“That statement is not correct… it is impossible,” said Mashego.

“Communities are venting their anger on our trains… we warned them [Prasa] that this would happen.”

Johannesburg emergency services spokesperson Synock Matodako said a burning object had been thrown at the coaches around 6am.

No injuries were reported.

Meanwhile, Transnet services also remained affected by striking Satawu members, who had stayed away from work since May 10.

Transnet announced on Monday that it would implement an 11% offer, regardless of Satawu’s demand for 15%.

The Transnet strike had already cost the agricultural sector more than R1-billion, Agriculture Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson said on Monday.

Satawu had also issued secondary strike notices to several port-related companies. Should the Transnet strike not be resolved by June 1, sympathy strikes would be legal in these companies.

Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) expressed “grave” concern about the economic impact of the strikes in a statement on Tuesday.

“Parties must be conscious of the damage inflicted by industrial action to the core national goals to which all South African citizens are committed,” BLSA CEO Michael Spicer said.

“In particular, wage demands set at multiples of the inflation rate must have the consequences of undermining the national goals of controlling inflation and raising employment.”–Sapa