Business Report *Strike to continue as public unions reject offer** * *Samantha Enslin-Payne, Business Report, Johannesburg, 18 August 2010*The National Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) and the SA Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu) have rejected the government's wage offer, setting the stage for a lengthy strike that will result in the closure of schools and severely limit hospital services.
Fikile Majola, the general secretary of Nehawu, said yesterday that the government's offer had been rejected and a strike would begin today.
Minimum services would be maintained at hospitals.The consolidated position of all 19 public sector unions representing 1.3 million public service workers would only be known late yesterday, he said.
Sadtu said it would embark on a "full scale indefinite strike" that would include a total shutdown of institutions from today.
Thobile Ntola, Sadtu's president said: "We will only stop when government responds."
These two unions jointly represent about 500 000 workers, with Sadtu representing more than two thirds of the country's teachers.
Dumisani Nkwamba, the spokesman for the Department of Public Service and Administration, said unions were due to table their joint response to the government's revised offer yesterday evening.
The government upped the monthly housing allowance to R700 from the R630 previously offered, compared with the current R500. The offer of a 7 percent wage increase was unchanged. Unions want an 8.6 percent pay rise and R1 000 a month housing allowance.
Lumkile Mondi, the chief economist at the Industrial Development Corporation, said as the government was the biggest employer, the impact of a strike would be huge.
Lost time in the public sector would affect the private sector and "we (South Africa) will forego a few percentage points on gross domestic product growth".
He said ultimately there would be a wage settlement, but this would come at a high price. "I don't see unions agreeing on a lower level as they can see how government leadership is flashing around. They can see the inequality gap."
Mondi said strikes that disrupt schooling contributed to the high school drop out rates, which would have negative social consequences.
Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen, an independent researcher and public policy analyst, said the strike would have a huge effect. "A growing economy needs its public service to work."
Hassen queried how long a strike could be sustained, as a successful strike required a quick deadlock, but "this has been a marathon". But he added that the unions demonstrated in 2007 their strong capacity to sustain a strike.
The strike comes barely a week before Grade 12 students are due to sit for their trial examinations on August 24.
According to a Tokiso Review study released in February, over the past five years school children have been the major casualties of industrial action as the Sadtu was responsible for 42 percent of all working days lost in the period.
*From: http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=552&fArticleId=5606233 <http://www.busrep.co.za/index.php?fSectionId=552&fArticleId=5606233>*
* * * * -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] .
<<image/jpeg>>
