Numsa to forge ahead with strike in engineering sector
Updated | By Sibahle Motha
The National Union Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) says it will forge ahead with a strike in the engineering sector.
The union, which represents over 430 000 workers in the sector plans, to down tools on 5 October.
General-secretary Irvin Jim says the union will follow all protocols.
“We will serve all employer associations with a 48-hour notice before we embark on this national strike. We will be embarking on a strike as a last resort as we have no choice but to push employers to give workers their deserved wage increases and to improve their benefits and conditions.
“On the first day of the strike we will embark on a national march where we will hand over a memorandum of our demands to all employer associations. In the march we will observe all covid-19 protocols.”
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Initial demands by Numsa included a 15% wage increase across the board.
However the union has since revised its demand.
“We are calling on and demanding that employers must put on the table an 8% increase across the board for the first year, and CPI + 2% improvement factor for the second and third year. If CPI + 2% falls below 6%, employers must offer 6% or re-open negotiations. This will settle negotiations,” said Jim,
“SEIFSA, on behalf of employers, made a proposal of a three-year agreement of only 4.4% increase for the first year. They have also offered CPI + 0.5% for the second year, and CPI + 1% for the third year. We have rejected this offer from SEIFSA.”
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