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Threat of Telkom strike still looms

Lauren Kate Rawlins
By Lauren Kate Rawlins, ITWeb digital and innovation contributor.
Johannesburg, 31 Mar 2015
CWU threatens to strike if Telkom remains stubborn.
CWU threatens to strike if Telkom remains stubborn.

Negotiations between Telkom and the Communication Workers Union (CWU) continue today. CWU says it will mobilise numbers if Telkom remains "stubborn".

Telkom spokesperson Jacqui O'Sullivan says Telkom CEO Sipho Maseko announced to Telkom staff yesterday: "The transfer date for the current Telkom employees to be moved to their new companies has been deferred by a month... This additional month was also part of the original offer that was made to all unions... Maseko feels the additional month would help our people adjust and prepare for the transfer."

CWU general secretary Aubrey Tshabalala said this morning when asked about the meeting yesterday: "The more we progress, the more we regress." Tshabalala explained the union wanted to extend the date by a month so that discussions with workers, lawyers and the company could continue.

"We vehemently disagree with how Telkom is portraying the CWU as agreeing with the outsourcing. We do not," said Tshabalala. "This is why we did not sign the proposal agreement for the voluntary packages yesterday."

Tshabalala said there were two main issues for not agreeing, "Firstly, we do not see any reason they should be outsourcing jobs; and secondly, the benefits vary and are worse off at the new companies." He cited the example of Bidvest not offering paid maternity leave.

Currently there is no strike action. "We will act in good faith because negotiations are taking place, but if Telkom remains stubborn, we will mobilise massive numbers," said Tshabalala.

O'Sullivan said CWU indicated yesterday that the union would like to take up the offer of voluntary severance and voluntary retirement packages, offered to all unions two weeks ago, for those employees affected by the current outsourcing plan, and whom would prefer not to be transferred to the new companies. "However, they have yet to sign the variation agreement, which is necessary to legalise the offer."

Two weeks ago, CWU declined the offer and the other unions, SACU and Solidarity, accepted it. "At the time, the offer was withdrawn as CWU had withheld their majority consensus. We were, however, able to extend the offer to individual unions through the use of variation agreements. Once SACU and Solidarity signed variation agreements with Telkom, we were able to legally offer the packages to them, individually.

"These are Telkom employees first and then union members; our employees are telling us they would like to have the option of a package. So we would like to make sure it is available to everyone," notes O'Sullivan.

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