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BL Premium reports that the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) says it will embark on an indefinite strike on Wednesday next week (11 November) to force the government to employ an estimated 20,000 community health workers as part of an agreement reached in the public health and social development sectoral bargaining council in 2019.
But the government does not have money and has had to cut budget allocations to raise the R10.5bn SA Airways needs to implement its business rescue plan. The health department, which the community health workers fall under, lost R694m in the exercise. On Wednesday, Nehawu’s Khaya Xaba said the health department had told them there was simply no money to employ the workers permanently. The trade union said a strike by community health workers, who are part of essential service in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, could be disruptive as they provided health education, early screening for communicable diseases, counselling and also visit patients and the elderly at their homes. Health departmental spokesperson Popo Maja said that the matter was before the central bargaining chamber and so the department “is not able to comment until it is concluded there.”
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page