The five-week long Pikitup strike is over and the workers will be back on the job today. The waste management company, the City of Johannesburg and the SA Municipal Workers' Union reached an agreement at the weekend.Under the agreement, facilitated by the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration, negotiations will continue at the CCMA on the workers' salary bench-marking demands, and on allegations about the conduct of Pikitup managing director Amanda Nair.Negotiations started on April 5.Part of the agreement is that workers in grades A and B will receive a R750 once-off payment. The CCMA would facilitate further negotiations on outstanding issues over the next three days.Dumisani Dakile, Cosatu's provincial secretary, called for an end to intimidation, violence, victimisation and harassment."We managed to reach an agreement [on Saturday] that has ended this unprotected strike, which commenced on March 9. The employees are returning to work with immediate effect."The city, ourselves and Samwu have committed to ensuring that all acts of intimidation from either side will come to an end," said Dakile.Matshidiso Mfikoe, the member of the mayoral committee for environment and infrastructure services, said a list of 18 allegations against Nair had been referred to an independent company for investigation. It would report back soon.The "no work, no pay" rule applies to the strikers.Mfikoe said half of the wages paid to them during the strike would be recovered by short payments at the end of this month, and the remainder in deductions in May and June "to allow workers to have some money in their accounts".About 4000 workers are facing disciplinary hearings for ignoring dismissal notices and the two court interdicts against them issued during the strike.Last week Johannesburg mayor Parks Tau said he intended to ask that criminal charges be preferred against the workers.The disciplinary hearings could result in workers keeping their jobs."The immediate return to work will, however, be taken into consideration as mitigation of the sanctions in the disciplinary hearings," said Mfikoe.Mfikoe said external service providers would continue to be hired to help with the backlog of rubbish collection, which has led to litter-strewn streets.The accumulation of waste poses a severe health risk, particularly in low-income, high-density areas of the city...