GroundUp reports that dozens of workers at Maluti-a-Phofung Water (MAP Water) in the Free State downed tools on Monday in protest against the municipality’s plan to close down the water company.

Workers blocked the entrance to the office in Phuthaditjhaba with their cars and picketed outside, singing songs. In a 25-page “execution plan” dated 7 October 2025, the municipality said water services delivery would be transferred back to the municipality. It indicated that permanent staff of MAP Water would be transferred to municipal departments and the terms of their contracts would be valid. According to the document, the council had decided that MAP Water had failed to provide water services to the communities of the municipality and had become a “huge liability”.

Bongane Mpofu, one of the affected employees, said workers had not been properly informed of the decision. “No proper channels were followed. They are saying some people will be moved to the municipality building to work from there, while others will be retrenched,” he said. Meanwhile, according to one of the workers, scheduled repairs would not be conducted during the strike and burst pipes would not be attended to. Some households were already without water on Tuesday.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tladi Moloi at GroundUp

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