PRESS RELEASE - 2014/07/04: METALS AND ENGINEERING STALEMATE CONTINUES DESPITE EMPLOYERS’ 25% SALARY MOVE
The meeting took place hours after the SEIFSA Council – made up of Chairpersons of employer Associations affiliated to the Federation – had approved a 10% wage increase for H-level employees in 2014, followed by nine and eight percent increases in 2015 and 2016 respectively, as well as an eight percent increase for A-level employees in 2014 and seven percent increases in 2015 and 2016 respectively.
The 10% adjustment for low-level employees at Rate H represented a whopping 25% move for SEIFSA from its previous offer of eight percent, while the move from the previous seven percent to eight percent for higher-level artisans represents a 14% adjustment.
SEIFSA Chief Executive Officer Kaizer Nyatsumba said that the Federation had approached last night’s meeting full of optimism that the new offer would lead to the conclusion of a deal which would see employees returning to work next week. He said the failure to reach an agreement was deeply disappointing.
He said that the new offer was the very best that SEIFSA could make under these difficult economic circumstances, and it was sweetened by the fact that the Federation’s members had agreed to take their demand for a 50% reduction of entry-level wages off the table.
“We are very deeply disappointed by this turn of events. After a long and heated discussion, the SEIFSA Council had finally come up with a very good offer that we were very confident would be acceptable to NUMSA. Regrettably, however, it would appear that we continue to be miles apart with the union as a result, among other things, of patently political demands about which we can do nothing,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He said that there was no way that employers in the metals and engineering sector, which was known for its peaks and lows, would accede to NUMSA’s demand to desist from ever using the services of labour brokers.
“NUMSA has taken its opposition to labour brokers and the youth wage subsidy up with the Government and failed to get an outcome to its liking, now the union wants to impose its wishes on employers,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
Mr Nyatsumba said that it had become increasingly clear that NUMSA had approached the negotiations with a political agenda, which it wanted to wage through the guise of negotiations on wages and conditions of employment.
“Regrettably, business is not a player on the political stage. It is evident to us that NUMSA is advancing a political agenda against the ruling party on matters like labour brokers and the youth wage subsidy, and that it has now chosen to bludgeon business into submission on those issues because it could not get its way with the Government,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He expressed concern that the failure to reach an agreement meant that the strike, which was already characterized by high levels of violence, would continue indefinitely, in the process causing even more damage to the economy.
Mr Nyatsumba revealed that many employers represented by the Federation had reported serious incidents of violence, with some striking workers having broken down factory gates and assaulted people. He reiterated his call on the police to maintain peace and to apprehend those behind the violence.
Mr Nyatsumba said that while SEIFSA would continue to hold one-on-one discussions with the other unions that were active within the metals and engineering sector, it did not have any future meetings planned with NUMSA.
PRESS RELEASE - 2014/07/04: METALS AND ENGINEERING STALEMATE CONTINUES DESPITE EMPLOYERS’ 25% SALARY MOVE
The meeting took place hours after the SEIFSA Council – made up of Chairpersons of employer Associations affiliated to the Federation – had approved a 10% wage increase for H-level employees in 2014, followed by nine and eight percent increases in 2015 and 2016 respectively, as well as an eight percent increase for A-level employees in 2014 and seven percent increases in 2015 and 2016 respectively.
The 10% adjustment for low-level employees at Rate H represented a whopping 25% move for SEIFSA from its previous offer of eight percent, while the move from the previous seven percent to eight percent for higher-level artisans represents a 14% adjustment.
SEIFSA Chief Executive Officer Kaizer Nyatsumba said that the Federation had approached last night’s meeting full of optimism that the new offer would lead to the conclusion of a deal which would see employees returning to work next week. He said the failure to reach an agreement was deeply disappointing.
He said that the new offer was the very best that SEIFSA could make under these difficult economic circumstances, and it was sweetened by the fact that the Federation’s members had agreed to take their demand for a 50% reduction of entry-level wages off the table.
“We are very deeply disappointed by this turn of events. After a long and heated discussion, the SEIFSA Council had finally come up with a very good offer that we were very confident would be acceptable to NUMSA. Regrettably, however, it would appear that we continue to be miles apart with the union as a result, among other things, of patently political demands about which we can do nothing,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He said that there was no way that employers in the metals and engineering sector, which was known for its peaks and lows, would accede to NUMSA’s demand to desist from ever using the services of labour brokers.
“NUMSA has taken its opposition to labour brokers and the youth wage subsidy up with the Government and failed to get an outcome to its liking, now the union wants to impose its wishes on employers,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
Mr Nyatsumba said that it had become increasingly clear that NUMSA had approached the negotiations with a political agenda, which it wanted to wage through the guise of negotiations on wages and conditions of employment.
“Regrettably, business is not a player on the political stage. It is evident to us that NUMSA is advancing a political agenda against the ruling party on matters like labour brokers and the youth wage subsidy, and that it has now chosen to bludgeon business into submission on those issues because it could not get its way with the Government,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He expressed concern that the failure to reach an agreement meant that the strike, which was already characterized by high levels of violence, would continue indefinitely, in the process causing even more damage to the economy.
Mr Nyatsumba revealed that many employers represented by the Federation had reported serious incidents of violence, with some striking workers having broken down factory gates and assaulted people. He reiterated his call on the police to maintain peace and to apprehend those behind the violence.
Mr Nyatsumba said that while SEIFSA would continue to hold one-on-one discussions with the other unions that were active within the metals and engineering sector, it did not have any future meetings planned with NUMSA.
PRESS RELEASE - 2014/07/03: SEIFSA CONDEMNS VIOLENCE BY STRIKING WORKERS AND CALLS ON THE SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE TO ACT
Acts of violence and intimidation have been reported across the country in the past two days, with Gauteng being the most affected province, followed by KwaZulu-Natal.
SEIFSA Chief Executive Officer Kaizer Nyatsumba said that the Federation was inundated with reports from its members of blatant acts of lawlessness, including violence and general mayhem, by some of the workers currently on strike. He said that while workers’ rights to go on strike was respected, there was “absolutely no room for violence”.
“We are extremely disappointed with the violent behaviour of some union members who have embarked on a wanton campaign of damaging properties – including vehicles – of some of our member companies in the Wadeville and Isando areas since the beginning of the strike. This is precisely what we wanted to avoid when we called on the unions to commit to a Peace Accord at the beginning of the negotiations,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
The unions doggedly refused to sign such a Peace Accord, saying that they would be prepared to discuss Strike and Picketing Rules only once negotiations had broken down. The agreement remains unsigned and has now been referred to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration for finalization.
Mr Nyatsumba called on the union leadership to ensure that their members behaved in accordance with the laws of the country and refrained from any violent behaviour, and on the South Africa Police Service to act swiftly to prevent a recurrence of violent actions. He revealed that he had twice written to the National Commissioner of the SAPS, General Riah Phiyega (see attached second letter), asking her to ensure that the police stood ready to protect life and limb throughout the country. He said that it was important that all those guilty of perpetrating violence were made to face the full might of the law.
“The right to strike should be exercised without infringing on the rights of others and without creating a perception of lawlessness. Violence and other reprehensible, criminal acts during a strike action cannot be condoned and should be punishable by law. Leaders of organised labour have to step forward and accept responsibility for the conduct of their members during a strike,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
The SEIFSA CEO expressed concern that damages perpetrated by striking workers had the potential to lower the country’s growth prospects even further and were likely to exacerbate South Africa’s current unemployment problem. He said that it was important for all stakeholders to work tirelessly together to bring the strike to a speedy end in order to avoid more violence as desperation set in among striking workers.
REPORT ON THE MAIN AGREEMENT SUB-COMMITTEE NEGOTIATIONS: 24, 25 & 26 JUNE 2014
The NUMSA Chief Negotiator indicated that they were in a position to do so, but sought the indulgence of the meeting in order to convene a joint trade union caucus to formulate a consolidated labour position. The meeting agreed to the request and the Facilitator adjourned proceedings.
On the resumption of proceedings, a consolidated labour position was presented to the employers.
Of interest is the revision of the trade unions’ demand on wages from 15% to 12% without conditions (that is, making reference to the 50% reduction on the entry level rates and the link to Section 37).
In response, the employers requested that the position presented on behalf of the trade unions be confirmed in writing so that, on its receipt, they would formulate their response accordingly.
Proceedings on 25 June commenced with a joint employer caucus aimed at formulating a joint employer response to the union position. Apart from the different positions adopted on Wages and Exemptions (and with exemptions the difference is more one of process as opposed to content), unanimity was achieved among all three employer bodies (SEIFSA, NEASA and BIEA) on all remaining matters. On Wages, NEASA is at 7% and BIEA is at 7.4% (both across the board), while SEIFSA is at 7% for Rate A and 8% for Rate H.
On Exemptions, there is unanimity on content (in terms of what employers would like to see incorporated into the existing National Exemptions Policy), but not on process. SEIFSA has accepted the combined union position and the position contained in the Settlement Offer on how the matter should be addressed versus the NEASA and BIEA view that Exemptions and, to a lesser extent, Regional Dispensation must be addressed and resolved as a pre-condition to settlement.
Accordingly it was agreed, after a series of individual and joint employer caucuses, that each employer body would articulate its respective position on both matters.
On returning to the Plenary Session, the SEIFSA position on all the matters – essentially an affirmation of the position set out in the Settlement Offer of 20 June – was presented, with emphasis on Section 37 and our continued desire to conclude discussions on Strike and Picketing Rules.
In response, the unions requested a brief adjournment in order to caucus. On their return from the caucus, the NUMSA Chief Negotiator expressed his disappointment with the employer response and confirmed that, in his view, the parties were still poles apart.
On the linkages to certain conditions, he stressed that from the outset NUMSA had stressed its position on two important principles, namely improving workers’ conditions and no downward variation of conditions of employment. He also indicated that in light of the position adopted by NEASA and BIEA on the matter of Exemptions, it would be pointless to meet on 26 June to deal with IPF Main Agreement Challenges and Exemptions.
He reiterated that the current National Exemptions Policy must be incorporated into the collective agreement as a point of departure, while discussions on Exemptions take place at the IPF. He ended off by confirming that in light of the employer presentations, the process had reached the point where the dispute remained unresolved and the Bargaining Council needed to be requested to issue a certificate on non-resolution of the dispute to the parties.
On the matter of the Strike and Picketing Rules, NUMSA indicated that whilst individual employers were at liberty to conclude individual plant-level agreements, the union would remain available to continue to discuss the possibility of concluding an industry framework even after the certificate on non-resolution has been circulated and 48 hours’ notice of strike action has been issued.
In closing proceedings, the General Secretary of the Bargaining Council confirmed:
- The cancellation of the session of 26 July;
- The issuing of the Certificate of Non-Resolution; and
- The continued availability of the Office and the Facilitator to continue to assist the parties in whatever capacity possible.
The President closed the meeting.
The Main Agreement negotiations now enter the last and most critical stage of the process: that of power play.
The issuing of the Certificate of Non-Resolution of the dispute clearly signals that the unions – but particularly NUMSA – are positioning themselves to embark on industrial action. The Office has received from NUMSA notices of mass marches to the SEIFSA Office and other locations around the country, to take place on Tuesday, 1 July.
At the time of compiling this report, we are expecting to receive the 48-hour notice of strike action to be received before the end of the week. When we receive it, we will, as mandated by the Council, respond with a 48-hour-notice of our intention to implement a lock out.
The sub-committee stage of the negotiations has achieved the objective of closing the gap between the parties. The next move, if any, will determine how quickly we can close the deal and, in so doing, avoid the prospect of a protracted strike action.
As agreed at the Council Meeting on 23 June, it is vitally important for the Chairpersons of the respective Associations to come to the meeting on 30 June with a firm mandate regarding the next stage of the process, in particular the next wage offer that should hopefully avert or end a strike.
PRESS RELEASE - 2014/07/01: SEIFSA REMAINS DETERMINED TO WORK TOWARDS A RESOLUTION OF WAGE IMPASSE
Speaking after receiving a memorandum at Metal Industries House from the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa, Mr Nyatsumba said the industry was deeply concerned about the damage caused by the strike to the economy. He said that each day on which employees were away from work cost the industry more than R300 million, which the ailing South African economy cannot afford. That is equivalent to 0,014% of the country’s daily Gross Domestic Product.
Mr Nyatsumba said that this was very concerning given the fact that South Africa’s economy had shrunk by 0,6% in the first three months of 2014 and that international ratings agencies have recently downgraded South Africa’s credit rating to just above junk status.
“Ours is a very strategic sector with both upstream and downstream impacts on other important industries like mining, construction and auto manufacturing. Therefore, it is not just companies in the sector that are affected or stand to be affected, but it is also those companies in these other industries,” he said.
Mr Nyatsumba revealed that he had received a call from the CEO of a major car manufacturing company based in South Africa, who expressed concern about the impact of the strike on his company. He said that the CEO had informed him that he was under “considerable pressure” from his head office in America to close operations down in South Africa and to move them to a country with a more stable labour dispensation.
“For the sake of our economy, which has been seriously under-performing and has already taken a considerable hammering as a result of the strike in the platinum sector that ended last week, we hope that it will be possible for us, employers and labour, to find one another over the next few days. This will call for a greater degree of realism on the part of labour in terms of its lofty demands and expectations,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He said that the industry welcomed the Government’s interest in the current stand-off between business and labour and hoped that it would help to propel the protagonists closer to one another.
The Minister of Labour, Mrs Mildred Oliphant, had a meeting with the leadership of both SEIFSA and NUMSA yesterday evening, with a follow-up meeting tentatively scheduled for Friday. Mr Nyatsumba stressed that the SEIFSA leadership would continue to make itself available for discussions with any stakeholders in an effort to settle the dispute as soon as possible.
PRESS RELEASE - 2014/07/01: SEIFSA REMAINS DETERMINED TO WORK TOWARDS A RESOLUTION OF WAGE IMPASSE
Speaking after receiving a memorandum at Metal Industries House from the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa, Mr Nyatsumba said the industry was deeply concerned about the damage caused by the strike to the economy. He said that each day on which employees were away from work cost the industry more than R300 million, which the ailing South African economy cannot afford. That is equivalent to 0,014% of the country’s daily Gross Domestic Product.
Mr Nyatsumba said that this was very concerning given the fact that South Africa’s economy had shrunk by 0,6% in the first three months of 2014 and that international ratings agencies have recently downgraded South Africa’s credit rating to just above junk status.
“Ours is a very strategic sector with both upstream and downstream impacts on other important industries like mining, construction and auto manufacturing. Therefore, it is not just companies in the sector that are affected or stand to be affected, but it is also those companies in these other industries,” he said.
Mr Nyatsumba revealed that he had received a call from the CEO of a major car manufacturing company based in South Africa, who expressed concern about the impact of the strike on his company. He said that the CEO had informed him that he was under “considerable pressure” from his head office in America to close operations down in South Africa and to move them to a country with a more stable labour dispensation.
“For the sake of our economy, which has been seriously under-performing and has already taken a considerable hammering as a result of the strike in the platinum sector that ended last week, we hope that it will be possible for us, employers and labour, to find one another over the next few days. This will call for a greater degree of realism on the part of labour in terms of its lofty demands and expectations,” Mr Nyatsumba said.
He said that the industry welcomed the Government’s interest in the current stand-off between business and labour and hoped that it would help to propel the protagonists closer to one another.
The Minister of Labour, Mrs Mildred Oliphant, had a meeting with the leadership of both SEIFSA and NUMSA yesterday evening, with a follow-up meeting tentatively scheduled for Friday. Mr Nyatsumba stressed that the SEIFSA leadership would continue to make itself available for discussions with any stakeholders in an effort to settle the dispute as soon as possible.
PRESS RELEASE - 2014/06/30: SEIFSA WITHDRAWS LOCK-OUT NOTICE AGAINST SOLIDARITY
The SEIFSA Council is made up of the Chairpersons of employer Associations affiliated to SEIFSA, and it is the highest decision-making body within the Federation. It took the decision a week ago to approve the 48-hour lock-out notice to all unions within the metals and engineering sector, but withdrew it today following a meeting between SEIFSA Chief Executive Officer Kaizer Nyatsumba and Solidarity General Secretary Gideon du Plessis this afternoon.
Mr Nyatsumba, who had requested the meeting with Mr Du Plessis, said that he appreciated the fact that Solidarity was sufficiently concerned about the poor state of the economy, including the ailing metals and engineering industries. He expressed the hope that the other unions, which have all given notice to go on strike, could also be persuaded to forego the strike or to end it as soon as possible.
Mr Nyatsumba also indicated that SEIFSA continued to make itself available for one-on-one meetings with the different role players and other interested parties with a view to ending the strike just as it is beginning.
"Our economy has been seriously under-performing over the past few years and the situation has been worsening in recent times. The last thing that we need is a strike," Mr Nyatsumba said.
NUMSA, MEWUSA, CEPPWAWU, UASA, SAEWA AND GIWUSA ISSUES 48 HOURS NOTICE TO PROCEED ON STRIKE ON 1 JULY 2014
SAEWA ISSUE NOTICE OF STRIKE ACTION