Samwu march in Tshwane broken up after objects thrown at police

South African Municipal Workers Union [Samwu] members who marched to Tshwane’s municipal offices on Wednesday to present their demands regarding the nonpayment of their salary increases for this year were dispersed after their march turned violent. 

People believed to be workers were seen throwing objects at police. 

Samwu members had gone to Tshwane House in Pretoria to present a memorandum of demands, after the tabling by the Tshwane council in April of the 2023/24 budget with no salary increases for municipal employees for the financial year.

They aimed to pressure the employer to look for money somewhere to alleviate workers’ economic hardships. 

The municipality had earlier announced it would apply for exemption from the salary collective agreement with the unions, which it failed to implement. 

On Wednesday morning, the city said it had received reports of intimidation of employees at Rosslyn fire station, and at Rosslyn, Karenpark and Lyttelton clinics, at the region 4 customer care walk-in centre, at Akasia municipal offices and at the Bronkhortspruit licensing centre. Those buildings were closed on Wednesday. 

Addressing the union leadership on Wednesday, Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink said the city had to make tough decisions, stating that Tshwane's finances were in a terrible state. 

“We want to pay salaries, we want to pay pensions, we want to meet the commitments to the workers. But we have to act in the long-term interests of residents and of the Tshwane community as a whole.

“We want for residents affected by this to have understanding. I am sure they understand that we cannot spend money we do not have and we cannot pre-empt the outcome of the [exemption] processes,” Brink said. 

Brink said Tshwane wanted to be a municipality that can afford to pay salary increases but any objective assessment of its finances showed it was unable to. 

“It is not just that we are not paying salaries. We are implementing a raft of other measures in an attempt to save the city and put it into the path of financial recovery,” Brink said. 

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