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BusinessLive reports that Gautrain services will be hit by a strike starting on Monday when disgruntled members of the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) abandon their posts and strike to push for wage hikes.
But Gautrain has assured passengers that services will not be disrupted by the strike. Numsa gave the management of Bombela Operating Company, which operates Gautrain, a 48-hour strike notice. Numsa spokesperson Phakamile Hlubi-Majola said on Sunday the strike was scheduled to start at 6am on Monday and went on to say: “We are warning commuters that the services may be interrupted ... We apologise for the inconvenience. However, we have been forced into taking this drastic course of action.” In July 2023, Numsa signed a one-year wage deal, which expired last month. Numsa’s primary demands include a 13% wage increase for all employees. The union is also demanding that Bombela cover 60% of employees’ medical aid costs and increase the housing allowance to R2,000 a month. Hlubi-Majola said wage talks began on 17 April “and we have had two rounds of talks. Our last meeting was on June 11, which is when we deadlocked with the employer. We are the majority union with sole negotiating power at Gautrain. The bosses refuse to meet our demands and this has led to workers resorting to strike action. It is an indefinite strike until the demands are met.” The union accused Bombela of treating workers unequally: “The bosses rewarded themselves and office workers with R22,000 each as a bonus, but blue-collar workers are denied a guaranteed bonus. They have an incentive bonus which requires that the applicant must first qualify in order to be paid.”
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive
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