Metal and engineering industry unions have rejected an offer employers put on the table on Tuesday afternoon, said Solidarity. Solidarity spokesperson Jaco Kleynhans said that after unions rejected the increased offer, employers held their own caucus meeting. Unions and employers were expected to meet back at the negotiation table on Tuesday evening.
The White House hit back on Tuesday in a bid to stem a growing Republican revolt over Iraq strategy, as Democrats drove home a searing attack on President George Bush over the war. The president’s spokesperson, Tony Snow, pushed back against reports Iraq would meet no benchmarks on political and military progress in an interim assessment due later this week.
Pakistani forces killed a rebel Islamist leader and more than 50 of his militants on Tuesday after 15 hours of fighting in an Islamabad mosque compound at the climax of a week-long siege. Militants mounted a last stand in the basement of a religious school where cleric Abdul Rashid Ghazi was killed, the Interior Ministry said.
Ford chief executive Alan Mulally said on Monday he expects the company to sell plug-in hybrids in five to 10 years. Mulally said the roll-out of Ford plug-in hybrids is dependent on advancements to lithium ion batteries that will be charged by the car’s owners using regular household electrical outlets.
The Smart car on Tuesday visited the city built on massive motoring muscle as part of a 50-city road show designed to demonstrate why backers say the tiny two-seater is ”the right car at the right time” for the United States. The summer road show precedes the US launch of the Smart fortwo early next year.
Italy will, if requested, be ready to help South Africa with safety and security issues during the 2010 World Cup, its Deputy Prime Minister, Massimo D’Alema, said on Tuesday. D’Alema was hosted by Foreign Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma in Pretoria where bilateral political and economic discussions between the two took place.
Former Talk Radio 702 chief executive and veteran radio presenter Stan Katz appeared in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday on two charges of assaulting his former wife Philippa Sklaar. The clerk of the court said Katz faced two charges of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm.
Defending champions Kaizer Chiefs and Limpopo heroes Black Leopards will parade their new signings and give their fans a taste of their entertaining brand of soccer when the Limpopo Soccer Challenge takes place at the Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane on Sunday. Kick-off is at 3.30pm.
First National Bank (FNB) has invested R100-million to fight ATM fraud over the next three years, it said in a statement on Tuesday. FNB chief executive Mike Arnold said the R100-million would ”beef up” security at more than 3Â 000 ATMs countrywide. ”Target our ATMs, and we will catch you and make you pay the price,” said Arnold.
Butch James, one of the Sharks’ favourite sons, has accepted an offer to see out his career at Bath in England. Not for want of trying, the Sharks’ generous offer had to be weighed against the reality of his future playing career. Two seasons ago, many would have laughed at the suggestion he would play again.