By Molefi Sompane
KROONSTAD – The shaky truce between municipal workers and their employer following a two-day unprotected strike was set to meet its waterloo at a meeting slated for Moqhaka Local Municipality headquarters offices in Kroonstad on Thursday, October 11.
Management and workers’ representatives were set to meet to thrash out differences that sparked a work boycott which ended after provincial and regional leaders from Independent Municipal workers Association and Trade Union (Imatu) and South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) intervened.
Workers unions asked members to return to work to allow legal procedures to be addressed by their representatives and the municipality.
Moqhaka communication officer, Mandisa Titi admitted on Tuesday, October 9 that workers had returned to their jobs while waiting for the outcome of a meeting between their unions and municipality.
She said the Local Labour Forum (LLF) was supposed to meet on Thursday, October 11 for unions to table their concerns.
“LLF will sit this coming Thursday where Unions will table their concerns. We are pleased to announce that both Samwu and Imatu have called off the illegal strike of Monday, October 1 and Tuesday the second.”
Workers earlier stated that promotions were given only to people connect to both Mayor Jihad Mohapi and the Municipal Manager.
“I have been working here for almost 9 years but still I am on the same position only people who share certain ideologies with the mayor and MM get ahead,” one of the workers who declined to be named said.
“We’ve been telling our shopstewads about a lot of things that are happening here but not all of our concerns have been attended to until we decided to go on a strike. “
Union leaders asked to remain anonymous fearing possible victimisation. “I respect what our leaders have done but members have told them to represent them not themselves.”
Another worker added: “We are firm on what we want to see happening to our members, we are here to support our members and tell the employer what his employees are demanding.”
One of the demands was calling on both Mohapi and the Municipal Manager to vacate their offices accusing them of driving the municipality maliciously into the ground.
But Titi said: “I cannot respond to unsubstantiated claims by workers of victimisation by both MM and Mayor unless these serious claims are backed up by facts.”
But the workers who claim to have been victimised said they are afraid to lodge complaints as they might lose their jobs. “All of the directors are pro Mayor and his MM. So it will be difficult for us to air our grievances as we fear losing our jobs,” another worker said.
Imatu met with its members on Friday, October 5 but remained mum about decisions taken at the meeting Public Eye has it on good authority that the municipality was preparing to issue workers with warning letters but Titi could not verify that.
Workers are expected to meet on Friday, October 12 for feedback from their reps.