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SowetanLive reports that commuter bus company Putco intends laying off more than 300 employees due to a decline in revenue and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The government-subsidised bus service that transports millions of passengers every day, mainly in Gauteng, Mpumalanga and Limpopo, is involved in a section 189 (retrenchment) process that is being facilitated by the CCMA. Putco spokesperson Matlakala Motloung said they were laying off workers due to a loss of passengers and revenue. “The number of jobs affected is not finalised as it must take into cognisance natural attrition such as deaths, retirement and resignations,” Motloung said. She said they had presented a number of proposals that could have helped to avoid retrenchments – including reducing overtime, introducing flexible working hours and early retirement – but these were rejected by the unions. But, Motloung added that they were still consulting with the unions and a final decision had not been taken. But, the SA Transport and Allied Workers Union’s (Satawu’s) Solomon Mahlangu said they were opposed to any job losses as they believed Putco could do more to avert them. Last year, Putco went to the SA Road Passenger Bargaining Council to apply for an exemption after indicating that it was unable to pay the 6% salary increase agreed on in the chamber. The council’s Gary Wilson said their exemption panel granted Putco a 50% exemption on the salary increase. “It [Putco] was granted the partial exemption on November 30 and that was appealed by Numsa and Satawu. We've sent that to the appeal panel, which we expect will rule shortly,” Wilson indicated.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Isaac Mahlangu at SowetanLive
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