Tempers flared on day two of a municipal workers’ strike in Grahamstown on Friday 4 July as protests seemed set to continue. However, officials say the city is running smoothly as they prepare for a weekend spike in visitors to the National Arts Festival.
Tempers flared on day two of a municipal workers’ strike in Grahamstown on Friday 4 July as protests seemed set to continue. However, officials say the city is running smoothly as they prepare for a weekend spike in visitors to the National Arts Festival.
In Church Square yesterday, police hung on to the sides of a truck from the cleansing department, preventing members of the South African Municipal Workers Union from accosting the driver. However, one striker grabbed a bucket from a woman cleaning the municipal toilets used by the festival goers.
The sight of fellow employees working, added to what they considered a snub by city officials yesterday, led to a tense situation. Police also blocked the strikers from entering the stalls area. Church Square houses around 50 gazebo-style market stalls for the duration of the 2014 National Arts Festival.
The strikers said yesterday that they would continue with the protests that started on the first day of the National Arts Festival. They said they would continue until municipal officials meet with them to address their demands.
Addressing the 50-odd strikers, Makana Samwu chairperson Zola Kolisi urged workers to stand together.
He said unless they did, the strike would be useless and would lose momentum.
He the strike should continue today.
Samwu member, Wandile Durhuwa, spoke to Grocott’s Mail.
“The municipal management says they don’t know which of our demands to start with and that the timing of the strike is wrong.
“What we fail to understand is that they have had the memorandum with them for three months, so they cannot say this strike came at the wrong time,” he said.
Durhuwa said the statement of grievances might date back only three months, but the issues behind them could be traced back even further.
“These people fail to give us simple things such as reports about the achievements of those who have managerial positions in the office when their term comes to an end. So we will continue with this strike until they meet with us and give us what we want. Until then the strike will continue,” Durhuwa said.
Earlier this week, Samwu secretary Lindelwa Faltein told Grocott’s Mail that the strike was the result of the municipality’s failure to adhere to a memorandum of understanding in February.
The outcome of post-strike negotiations at the time, Faltein said officials had agreed to extensive consultation with the unions over key administrative issues. Faltein said they had not done this.
While the temperature rose in Church Square yesterday, the weather in Grahamstown took a turn overnight. From the summery conditions of the first two days of Festival, day three has begun at a damp 12 degrees.
