South African Airways on Saturday held a first round of mediated talks with unions, one day after its workers launched an open-ended strike that forced the embattled airline to ground hundreds of flights.
Sibahle Motha
More than 3,000 workers - including cabin crew, technical and ground staff - started striking on Friday to demand higher pay and to protest against restructuring plans involving heavy job losses.
The walkout forced South Africa's cash-strapped flag carrier to cancel more than 300 domestic and regional flights between Friday and Monday.
South African Airways (SAA) said unions had agreed to start talks on Saturday mediated by the CCMA.
The National
Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) and the South African Cabin Crew
Association (SACCA) will meanwhile be briefing workers on Sunday afternoon on yesterday's section 150 mediation.
Unions first threatened to strike after SAA announced this week that almost 1,000 employees could lose their jobs as part of a restructuring process.
Talks with management deadlocked after they failed to agree on wage hikes, prompting unions to press on with their threats.
SAA is offering a 5.9 percent pay rise, while unions are demanding an eight percent across-the-board hike and a three-year guarantee of job security.
SAA is one of the biggest airlines in Africa.
It employs more than 5,000 workers, with a fleet of more than 50 aircrafts providing dozens of domestic, regional and international flights each day.
However, the carrier is deep in debt, despite several government bailouts, and has not posted a profit since 2011.
