BusinessLive writes that possible protracted wage talks in the automotive industry could hamper efforts to recover SA’s economy, which declined by R56bn in the first quarter of 2019.
On Friday, the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) issued a stern warning to industry captains that the upcoming negotiations would be difficult. A multi-year wage agreement between Numsa and the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA (Naamsa) comes to an end on 30 June. Numsa fired the first salvo on Thursday when it declared that opening discussions with Naamsa had already hit a hurdle after the association refused to accept a pre-condition that workers would receive back-pay in the event of protracted wage talks. Numsa has yet to table its wage demands and would not say if it would settle for a multi-year agreement, which was favoured by employers as it would bring stability to the industry. “Difficult negotiations lie [ahead], that I can tell you without any fear,” the union’s national treasurer Mphumzi Maqungo said, explaining that this was because the automotive and tyre wage agreements were also coming to an end in June, while the motor sector was due for wage talks around August/September. He commented: “They want us to say we will shut down the automotive industry so that we are viewed as irresponsible. We are not over-zealous over a strike. We are going to these talks with cool heads because the strike’s impact will be felt by the entire country.”
- Read the full original of Luyolo Mkentane’s report in the above regard at BusinessLive
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