CWU vows to take battle over SABC job cuts ‘to the streets’
The Communication Workers Union (CWU) has vowed to put up a massive fight if the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) goes ahead with its plans to retrench staff.
The national broadcaster, in its Section 189 notice in June, indicated that as many as 600 full-time workers could be retrenched.
CWU general secretary Aubrey Tshabalala believes the SABC has already reached its target.
"We want SABC management to stop unreasonable retrenchments, according to the 2020/21 corporate plan they needed to retrench 600 staff for the staff to be below 3000 based on cutting costs. But they have already at this point in time reached their target, so there is no rationale in continuing with retrenchments."
He says they are finalising plans to strike if SABC fails to respond.
"Noting that we are dealing with highly arrogant and incapable management that relies only on absolute arrogance to implement whatever they want without engagement. We have to take action and one of the actions that we have to take is to take the battle to the streets, what we couldn't win in the boardroom we have to win it in the streets.
"We are dealing with logistics as to when and how we gonna take this action, We are planning a serious blackout of SABC until the management sobers up.”
He says they do not expect the SABC to respond to their demands.
LISTEN TO AUBREY TSHABALALA BELOW:
"We have to wait for the response of the management to be able to take the next step, but based on our experience we know they are arrogant, we know that they fail to discuss, we know that they have walked out and we have also given the portfolio committee in Parliament.
“We will mobilise every worker and alliance partners in fighting this battle.”
