Parliamentary staff bonus strike suspended

“Our decision to suspend the protest emanates from an agreement we reached with management,” chairperson of Nehawu’s Parliament branch, Sthembiso Tembe, said during a media briefing after he addressed cheering and ululating workers.

Parliamentary staff had been striking over a dispute around how their bonus were to be calculated.

“The agreement confirmed the union’s position in terms of the agreement we signed in March which says the perfromance bonusses will be paid based on the annual package. The management has agreed on that one,” said Tembe.

Nehawu and Parliament management agreed to form a task team, made up of representatives from both sides, and outside parties if necessary, to work on the “modalities or percentage that will be paid” to workers.

Parliament’s secretary Gengezi Mgidlana later confirmed the deal during a media briefing, reading from the agreement, which says: “An inclusive committee [task team], incorporating of representatives from both management and the union, should be established … and this committee would deal with the modalities and details on the practical implementation of this principle taking into account the finances of Parliament.”

The task team has until Friday to report back to workers, who will then decide whether they will accept or reject management’s offer.

In the meantime, workers will report for duty on Wednesday morning.

Workers would also be reimbursed the amount deducted from their salaries last week based on the “no work, no pay” principle.

In return, workers will help clear the backlog in parliamentary work created by the strike.

“That work needs to be undertaken by their (Nehawu’s) members. When they are done, there’s not going to be overtime for that,” said Mgidlana.

Both Mgidlana and Tembe played down the tense relations between workers and management.

Tembe said there were various “issues that broke the camel’s back”.

He said the deployment of public order police to the parliamentary precinct last week, which led to running scuffles between officers and striking workers and the firing of stun grenades, as well as the deduction of salaries led to the tensions.

But, Tembe said the union was committed to continuing negotiations with Parliament “in good faith”, and insisted their previous calls, which included demanding that “Mgidlana must go”, were not personal.

“The rights that were exercised are contained in the Labour Relation Act … therefore we don’t think there is anything personal,” he said.

Mgidlana agreed, saying: “In any kind of situation of this matter you get relations strained but I can assure you, on the part of management, we have very professional in this regard”.

Nehawu’s other demands, which included better pension benefits, an end to outsourcing, and a lack of consultation with the union over the re-vetting of parliamentary staff, would remain on the table for future negotiations.