No load shedding for Port Elizabeth – all the electricity workers are on strike

[Kevin Lancaster]

No load shedding for Port Elizabeth – all the electricity workers are on strike

While the rest of South Africa has been hard hit by load shedding this weekend, residents from Nelson Mandela Bay have not had to endure any planned power outages since Friday.

 

[Voicy]

Imagine being so crap at your job that you can't even NOT provide the service.

Those guys are such losers, if there was a competition to see who the world's biggest losers are, they'd come 2nd.

 

[MickeyD]

This article only tells one of the story. Let's look at another ...

Some technical staff were paid a "skills allowance", which is a national government initiative across all metros to retain skilled staff.

The mayor made a decision to cut this allowance and divert the savings to the upkeep of sports fields. It was done unilaterally and without consulting the staff and/or their unions and was also contrary to the metro's approved policies and procedures.

When the relevant staff received their payslips for the month the allowance was excluded. Their requests for an audience with the mayor were denied. So they went on strike.

 

[bwana]

While the rest of South Africa has been hard hit by load shedding this weekend, residents from Nelson Mandela Bay have not had to endure any planned power outages since Friday.

Instead I suffered from 36 hours of unplanned outage… I'd have gratefully endured a few hours of planned outages instead.

 

[TEXTILE GUY]

This came after the 2015/16 budget for the metro, tabled under new Mayor Danny Jordaan last month, saw a R500m cut from salaries for vacant positions and special skills levies, and a further R123m cut in the maintenance budget.

So, as I understand it .... Danny Jordaan is doing a FIFA again ....

Keep the lights on for now, but when the skills leave, and the machines break ... double or even triple load shedding?

The incompetence of the ANC is just mind blowing .... and yet, people are card carrying members who want to be asked all sorts of arb questions?

 

[MickZA]

So Danny actually took the decision?

 

[MickeyD]

NOTICE FROM METRO ON ILLEGAL STRIKE BY ELECTRICITY AND ENERGY OFFICIALS

The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality would like to assure the residents and ratepayers of Nelson Mandela Bay that the Municipality is working around the clock to make sure that employees of its Electricity and Energy Directorate, who are currently on an illegal strike, resume their duties immediately.

Since last Friday, some employees in the Municipality's Electricity and Energy Directorate have been on an illegal strike, based on dissatisfaction with issues related to allowances. This strike has placed considerable strain on the services that the Directorate renders to the public and caused delays in attending to electricity related problems, because of the absence of dedicated staff to deal with them. The Municipality wishes to extend an apology to residents for the inconvenience that has been caused by this strike.

This morning, a delegation, led by the Portfolio Chairperson of Infrastructure and Engineering, Andile Mfunda, met the striking employees in a bid to find common ground. Afterwards, Mfunda said: "We apologise to our residents and businesses that have been affected by this strike. We are doing all that we can to bring the situation to normal. I have already met the striking workers to talk to them about their grievances and the importance of them going back to work. The meeting was progressive and we hope to have a solution that will lead to normality before Friday this week".

Mfunda added that residents should continue to register their electricity related queries or complaints with the Call Centre.

"Although we will not be able to attend to complaints immediately, we will try our best to reach everyone," said Mfunda.

 

[Fulcrum29]

Nice to see that even opposition supporters applauded Danny into his position, to shake things up... he certainly shake those employees up.

 

[bwana]

What was the plan? To get paid for being "on-call" until something went wrong and then claim they're striking?

 

[LaraC]

Instead I suffered from 36 hours of unplanned outage… I'd have gratefully endured a few hours of planned outages instead.

That is horrible. Is it because the mayor stay in your neighbourhood?

 

[bwana]

That is horrible. Is it because the mayor stay in your neighbourhood?

No, it's because the pseudo-strikers didn't want to do their jobs. Contractors repaired the lines by Saturday morning but the control room wouldn't switch the area on until Sunday.

I know a lot of people who'd like to donate some of their rotten food-stuffs to the strikers…

 

[DrJohnZoidberg]

So it's just going to take some other municipality to go on strike, they're not going to load shed either and it's going to bring the entire grid down. Possibility?

 

[LaraC]

So it's just going to take some other municipality to go on strike, they're not going to load shed either and it's going to bring the entire grid down. Possibility?

Wouldn't Eskom just cut an entire city if that should happen?

 

[MickeyD]

Wouldn't Eskom just cut an entire city if that should happen?

Yes.

 

[LaraC]

Yes.

My thoughts exactly. If a city can't deal with the responsibility it will be taken away and dealt with at a higher level. It will also not be beneficial to the end user if it should happen.
Hopefully they are able to come to a mutual agreement soon.

 

[crackersa]

I support the strikers. No pay no work

 

[thatshowiroll]

Imagine being so crap at your job that you can't even NOT provide the service.

Hahaha! That's brilliant.

 

[MickeyD]

Load-shedding threat by strikers

PAY us our money now because if we don’t have money to enable us to eat, there could be permanent load-shedding, Nelson Mandela Bay municipal workers demanding their scarce skills allowance threatened yesterday.

As the workers entered their second day of the illegal strike early yesterday, there was still confusion over whether or not they would be paid their allowances docked from their salaries.

However, later in the day – after a meeting with labour relations representatives and city manager Mpilo Mbambisa – the workers were assured that the money would be paid into their accounts today or tomorrow at the latest.

The city’s technicians, plumbers and other service workers of the electricity and infrastructure departments downed tools on Monday.

Some workers who were supposed to be on standby at the weekend refused to work.

Until the impasse is resolved, no staff will be attending to any power-related complaints or implementing Eskom’s load-shedding.

A group of about 100 workers marched to the Port Elizabeth City hall at about noon yesterday, demanding an audience with Mbambisa and mayor Danny Jordaan.

They sang and danced on Vuyisile Mini Square chanting “Danny! Danny!”. “Play the World Cup song. Maybe Danny will come down quicker,” one worker shouted before they proceeded to play Waka Waka. No one went to address them. The workers expressed their frustrations at not being consulted before the council decided last month to stop paying the scarce skills allowance.

This meant that 10% of their salaries was docked.

Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union chairman Chris Hay said: “The scarce skills allowance is aimed at trying to attract and retain staff here.

“There can’t be a unilateral decision to change that without consultation.

“The unions have never agreed to do away with scarce skills.”

SA Municipal Workers’ Union deputy chairman Patrick Gobodo said: “Taking the workers’ money away is uncalled for . . . We want the city manager and Danny to tell us they are putting our money in the bank.

“The communities are suffering, but how are you going to work if you know your child is being expelled from school because you can’t pay school fees? This is money that we budget for.

“What happens if workers at electricity and energy don’t have money to eat? It means we’ll have permanent load-shedding.”

Full story here: http://www.heraldlive.co.za/load-shedding-threat-strikers/

 

[The_Unbeliever]

Lovely cANCer mess, this one.

Viva cANCer, Viva!!!

 

[thehuman]

I won't be too happy if my salary was suddenly 10% less