ANA reports that the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) said on Wednesday that wage negotiations in the engineering sector have deadlocked after the union rejected the 5.3% wage increase offered made by employers earlier this month.  

The parties have been meeting under the auspices of the Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council (MEIBC) to negotiate a new wage agreement.  The current agreement lapses at the end of June.  Numsa is inter alia seeking a 15% wage increase across the board based on actual rather than minimum rates.  The union’s spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi said talks have deadlocked because the employers were trying to impose backward wage proposals which would see new workers in the sector earning only half of the current minimum rate.  Hlubi also said:  “The engineering sector remains largely white owned, racist and sexist.  The lowest pay is reserved for the African majority and workers continue to be exposed to appalling working conditions.”

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