Cape Times reports that on 1 July 2016, close to 1,000 workers will become full-time employees of the University of Cape Town (UCT).  

In what has been hailed as “a massive victory” for workers, and their allies the students at the university, UCT vice-chancellor Max Price announced that a historic agreement between management and the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) Joint Stewards Council would come into effect next month.  Last year, Nehawu forged an alliance between workers and students that eventually forced the university’s hand into changing its outsourcing policy.  Workers like cleaners and gardeners who had previously been earning just over R3,000 a month will now be taking home more than R7,500 a month, plus benefits.  Price said though that the insourcing project had added to the university’s challenge of financial sustainability and indicated:  “We have budgeted for a once-off capital expenditure of R40 million from our reserves and an annual recurrent operational cost of approximately R68m… We are now approximately R250m short annually.”

Read this report by Carlo Petersen in full at Cape Times

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