South Africa faces major municipal strike as wage talks collapse
The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) has threatened to embark on a nationwide strike after government wage talks collapsed.
Samwu, which represents over 160,000 municipal workers across the country, said that it would declare a formal dispute and request a strike certificate after the government failed to offer above-inflation increases to workers.
The union said it has now reverted to its original demands, as follows:
- A single year salary and wage agreement;
- A R4,000 salary increase for all workers;
- A R15,000 sectoral minimum wage.
Samwu said that as part of the ongoing negotiations it has balloted workers for a potential strike in the sector, with 80% of respondents voting to go ahead with mass action.
The union said it will now conclude the wage negotiations ‘on the streets’. “Workers are ready, our sneakers are ready, we shall therefore conclude these negotiations on the streets,” it said.
Municipal salary negotiations have officially collapsed, SAMWU to declare dispute and request strike certificate. pic.twitter.com/1pooN9v1gp
— SAMWU Official (@SAMWUnion) July 2, 2021
Economists at the Bureau of Economic Research (BER) warned that South Africa is facing an incredibly long and drawn-out period of strike threats and uncertainty due to the government’s latest austerity budget.
The group said that the government has been facing an uphill battle against unions over wage hikes after budgetary constraints forced it to renege on a 2018 wage agreement, which saw public sector wages frozen in 2020.
National Treasury has also vowed to cut the public sector wage bill by R160 billion over the next three financial years.
The government has allowed the public sector wage bill to bloat significantly over the last decade, to the point that it now accounts for over a third of total government expenditure.
With little room to grow the country’s tax base – and thus increase revenue – the government has no choice but to look at cutting expenditure to balance the country’s books, and finance minister Tito Mboweni has promised to do so, including a massive cut to the wage bill of R160 billion over the next three financial years.
Read: Most provinces in South Africa reaching red alert as third wave takes grip: health department
Loading ...