The civil servants union Nehawu is threatening to intensify the public service strike, should the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) fail to adhere to its demands.
Nehawu has called for a national indefinite strike demanding a salary increase of 10%, while the government is insisting on a 3% hike.
The DPSA tried to interdict the strike but failed and today when addressing Nehawu members in Mahikeng in the North West, the union’s national treasure, Kgomosto Makhupola, said the workers are not backing down from their demands.
“We have tabled the demands at our bargaining council, and those demands have not been attended to. And instead what the government is doing is applying the tactics, which they have been applying all these years, of unitarily implementing what they think is correct for the workers. And unfortunately, this time around we are saying, we are not going to take what the government is going to give us, which is 3%.
“And they have actually been misleading the members of the public, that in the previous year. They have given us 7.5 %, which is actually not true. Instead what they gave us, is a mere 4 % including what is called a gratuity allowance of R8 000.
“And now that gratuity allowance was a non-pensionable allowance, which this coming increase will take away. And that means the salary bracket of the workers is actually going to go down. So we don’t want the 3 % that the government is imposing on us. But instead, we want a 10% increase,” Makhupola said.
Makhupola said the strike will intensify tomorrow, as most of its members were confused by the DPSA’s attempt to halt the strike with a court interdict.
“We have appealed the interdict. Most of our members are not taking part in the strike today because of the confusion around the interdict. But now since it’s appealed, the indefinite strike will intensify. We are not going to back down until our demands are met. We’d rather return to the negotiations, we reject the 3% offered by the government,” she said.
The North West Police fired rubber bullets at protesting civil servants who have barricaded roads in Mahikeng. Nehawu’s North West secretary Ntombizodwa Moepeng accused police of intimidating striking employees.
“Five of our members were arrested, we managed to negotiate for two. But three of them are currently at the police station and charged with public violence. There was no violence here. An instruction was issued by captain Makgwe.
“He said they must shoot and arrest. And indeed they shot some of our members. Luckily they managed to disperse quickly. We have managed to get our lawyers and hope our members will be released soon,” Moepeng said.
North West police spokesperson, Captain Sam Tselenyane confirmed three strikers were arrested and charged with public violence in Mahikeng, during the public service strike. Similar protests were held across the country.
