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News24 reports that the SA Municipal Workers' Union (Samwu) says the City of Johannesburg has no legal grounds for reversing the employment contracts of 130 employees without a court order.
The battle about the fixed-term contracts of political staffers has caused a back-and-forth battle between the City of Joburg and Samwu. The original council decision taken last year while the ANC governed the City saw the contracts of 130 staffers converted to permanent. But in February, the DA-led multiparty coalition government passed a council resolution that overturned that decision. City of Johannesburg Mayor Mpho Phalatse said legal consultations had indicated that the ANC-led mayoral committee's resolution in October 2021 had been illegal. The employees concerned were sent notices requesting them to make representations about the matter. At first, Samwu and the workers had resisted making representations, citing the need to seek legal opinion. However, on 9 March, the union filed representations arguingh that “only a competent court of law has the authority to declare the validity of our members' permanent contract.” These representations came hours after acting city manager Mesuli Mlandu issued a directive confirming the reversal of the decision to convert the contract of staffers from fixed term to permanent. According to the directive, the fixed-term contracts end in April.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Zintle Mahlati at News24
- Read too, City of Joburg contract saga: 'I don't have any political affiliations, this hurts', at News24
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page