Engineering News reports that the Steel and Engineering Industries Federation of Southern Africa (Seifsa) has described suggestions that it was only representing the interests of large employers in the metals and engineering sector as malicious “propaganda”.
The employers’ organisation said in a statement that it “fights hard” to represent both small and big companies. Seifsa was responding to a statement, titled ‘Exposing Seifsa’, in which the National Employers’ Association of SA (Neasa) accused its rival body of having caused “untold hardship – in terms of business closures and job losses”. Neasa said it was particularly concerned by media reports that Seifsa was currently engaging in bilateral discussions with the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) following a deadlock in wage talks at the Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council (MEIBC). Talks officially deadlocked on 15 June, following two rounds of negotiations. Seifsa CEO Kaizer Nyatsumba confirmed that they would indeed engage directly with the unions in an effort to avoid “devastating” industrial action.
- Read this report in full at Engineering News
- Read Seifsa’s press statement at Seifsa online
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