Wage Strike News Today

OpEd: They may not be on the picket line, but our teachers and educators are showing us that we need to increase their pay.

SA's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Tuesday said it was planning to strike at De Beers' Venetia mine after wage talks broke down, potentially disrupting operations at the diamond giant's new $2.3 billion underground facility.

The National Union of Metalworkers of SA has chosen a critical travelling period to threaten a national strike in the bus sector ahead of the Easter long weekend, demanding a 7% wage increase and insurance benefits.

Over the past few months, some public servants abandoned their posts over wage issues; the most recent being the Nehawu-led strike that government claims caused the loss of at least four lives.

Workers affiliated with the union downed their tools for more than a week over their demand for a 10% wage increase for the 2023/2024 financial year.

Provincial health department bosses have accused striking Nehawu workers of violating a court order that limits striking at their facilities.

The health department said that operations at health facilities were still compromised as employees were determined to return to the picket lines.

Members of the South African National Defence Force occupied the various entry points at the health facility to bring about normalcy.

Healthcare practitioners from the South African Defence Force (SANDF) were deployed to Thelle Mogoerane Hospital on Monday.

Operations at the hospital came to a halt on Wednesday as workers affiliated with Nehawu downed tools over wages.