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Afrique du sud : NEHAWU to intensify strike action at Vaal University of Technology

D 9 décembre 2011     H 05:11     A NEHAWU     C 0 messages


NEHAWU is planning to intensify its strike action at the Vaal University of Technology VUT in order to force the management of the institution to reopen the negotiations with the union and take drastic steps to speedily resolve the current impasse.

Our members at VUT have been on strike since the 10th of November 2011, following the breakdown of negotiations with management over their failure resolve a myriad of problems that negatively affect the workers.

The union has been for the past few years trying to convince the management of VUT to resolve a number of issues affecting workers especially the unacceptable and scandalous wage gap between executive management and general employees. Over the duration of the negotiations the management has shown an astonishing level of insolence and no appetite for an amicable solution.

This left the union with no other choice but to look for outside intervention at the CCMA. After the failure of the conciliation process at the CCMA, the union was given a certificate to strike and members unanimously voted for the withdrawal of labour starting last week on the 10th of November 2011.

What is more disappointing is the childish and amateurish posture that has been adopted by the university management since the resumption of the strike action last week. They responded by employing an ill-qualified security company that has been using threats and violence to deal with the workers. Secondly they refused to discuss the picket rules but naively applied for an ill-conceived court interdict that was today set aside by the Labour Court.

Unfortunately while the management is staggering from one crisis to another a lot of valuable time is being lost and this can only result in a protracted strike action where innocent stakeholders are affected.

NEHAWU is ready and willing to talk to the management to try and resolve this dispute as soon as possible, but we expect the management to adopt a constructive approach if a solution is to be found.

Our union wants the following issues to be resolved for the workers to go back to work :

 Stop the widening salary disparities between the executive management and the general employees.

 Implementation of a fair and a transparent job evaluation process.

 We demand that all contract workers be assimilated as permanent employees.

 We demand an investigation of a controversial job secondment process, for senior managers and an end to unfair discrimination of internal employees when filling vacant posts.

 We demand an immediate investigation and resolution of all reported racism cases.

 We demand a moratorium on outsourcing

NEHAWU looks forward to going back to the negotiating table but we are adamant that the strike will not just continue but will be intensified if the management fails to respond positively to the worker’s demands.