Picture: NEHAWU-affiliated members embarking on strike
By OBAKENG MAJE
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU) said, they will continue with the strike until the government comes to the table.
The NEHAWU-affiliated members across the country embarked on a national shutdown demanding 10% salary increments. Â
The NEHAWU national treasurer, Kgomotso Mokhupola, who was in Mahikeng, North West on Monday addressing NEHAWU members said, the purpose of today’s strike was mainly on collective bargaining issues.
“We have tabled demands at the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC), however, those demands have not been attended to.
“Instead, what the government is doing, is applying the same tactics they did all these years. They are unilaterally implementing what they think is correct for the workers,” she said.
Mokhupola further said, they are not going to take what the government is going to give them, which is 3%. She added that the government is actually misleading the public that, in the previous years, they have given them 7.5%, which is not true.
“In fact, what the government gave us was a mere 4.5% including a gratuity allowance of R8000. The gratuity allowance was a non-pensionable allowance and the government will take it away in the coming salary negotiations.
“This means the salary brackets of the workers will actually go down. So, we do not want the 3% the government wants to impose on us, but instead, we want a 10% increase,” said Mokhupola.
She said they have appealed the interdict from the Department of Service and Administration. Makhupola said it is absurd for the government to expect the same disgruntled workers to render services to the public diligently.
“It started in 2018 when government reignite on a particular resolution. The same government expects the same workers to render service to the public.
“So, it must come to the party, even if that means we meet each other halfway, not us being shown the middle finger by it,” said Makhupola.
Meanwhile, the North West police spokesperson, Captain Sam Tselanyane said: “We can confirm that three NEHAWU members aged 32, 40, and 56 respectively, were arrested for public violence by the police.
“They will appear in court once they have been charged. So, for now, I cannot tell when will they appear in court.”
The Guardian 