GroundUp reports that hundreds of workers from the Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality marched outside the City Hall in East London on Wednesday, calling for the permanent employment of temporary workers and an improvement in their working conditions.  

The members of the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) started their strike on Tuesday in both East London and King Williams Town.  The strikers included garbage collectors, firefighters and security guards working for the municipality.  “We want the municipality to absorb workers and make them full time employees.  We have people here who have been temporary since 2007,” said Samwu’s Zola Capucapu.  He went on to indicate:  “We were promised bonuses by the City in 2016.  We have not received them.  Andile Sihlala, the City manager must step down.  In our view he is undermining us as workers.”  On Wednesday afternoon talks between the City and union leaders had deadlocked, according to Capucapu.

• Read the full original report by Chris Gilili at GroundUp

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