Strike by Home Affairs employees averted

A looming strike by Department of Home Affairs employees has been averted.

The National Education Health & Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) said on Friday it had signed an agreement with the department on Thursday night which put brakes on the imminent strike.

“This agreement came after a marathon of failed negotiations between the union and the management of the department up until the intervention meeting held yesterday at the Public Service Sectoral Bargaining Council (PSCBC).

“This intervention meeting was attended by both Ministers of the Public Service and Administration and Home affairs‚” said Nehawu in a statement.

The organisation’s general secretary‚ Bereng Soke‚ said the union had tried to persuade the department to withdraw circular no. 2 of 2015 which “introduced unilaterally the new working hours hence the dispute”.

“As a result‚ workers were forced to work under these unbearable working hours‚ as consequences workers were subjected to disciplinary hearings while others were given leave without pay for not complying with the circular.

“The signed agreement confirms the withdrawal of the circular and that workers will revert back to the working conditions that were applied prior to the introduction of the imposed new working hours by the Director General [Mkhuseli Apleni]‚” Soke said.

He said according to the agreement‚ “an understanding and a directive was reached that the department must table in the bargaining chamber a proposal on the new working arrangements for negotiations with labour”.

-SowetanLIVE