JOHANNESBURG – The South African Post Office (Sapo) says it’s pleased that the Communication Workers Union (CWU) has suspended its four-month strike which crippled operations.
The strike led to Post Office closures throughout the country.
The parastatal has also lost over R350 million.
Sapo’s Simo Lushaba says while they’re encouraged by the end of the strike, they will no longer tolerate any interruptions to its operations by wild cat strikers.
He says a sustainable Sapo is only possible in a harmonious and collaborative labour relations environment.
Lushaba also says operations in all provinces are now at almost 100 percent capacity and they will have to focus on clearing the four-month backlog.
Meanwhile, the CWU says it will continue pursuing a 7.5 percent wage hike and fight for casual employees to be made permanent.
The decision by the union to put the strike on hold follows an ultimatum from Sapo management demanding that employees return to work or face being fired.
CWU’s Clyde Mervin says it will continue talks with the parastatal, and if a final agreement cannot be reached, it will continue with the strike in January.
“If a final agreement isn’t reached, we’ll have a full blown strike by January.”
Source: [EWN]
