Parliament workers go on strike

schumi

schumi

Honorary Master
Joined
Mar 26, 2010
Messages
25,095
Reaction score
2,032
Location
Durban
Thulani Gqirana

Cape Town - Parliament came to a standstill on Monday when various support workers downed tools.

Workers from different sectors, including cleaners, communications gathered at the Old Assembly Chamber singing and toy-toying for more money.

This led to the visitors centre closing from 09:30.

One aggrieved worker said Parliament was diverting money from workers to other projects, including the new Parliamentary protection services.

"Those guys earn three times what they earned before they joined the unit. Where does that money come from?"

Workers also want performance bonuses to be based on annual, and not monthly salaries.

The protests started on Friday. Workers will be addressed by a Nehawu representative on Monday morning.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/parliament-workers-go-on-strike-20151109
 
Parly staff threaten to storm National Assembly

Jenni Evans and Thulani Gqirana, News24

Cape Town - Parliament was brought to a standstill on Tuesday by striking workers.

And National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union branch chairperson in Parliament Sthembiso Tembe said that if their demands were not met by 14:00 on Wednesday, they would enter the National Assembly.

"Nothing is going to sit," he said.

With interpreters, committee secretaries, cleaners and legal advisers on strike, the business of Parliament was disrupted on Tuesday. Meetings and a planned 11:00 plenary were cancelled.

Members of Parliament decided to continue with the afternoon sitting despite no interpreters being available.

In response, workers filled up the lobby of the National Assembly building.

They sang and danced outside the doors where MPs entered and exited. Someone even blew vuvuzelas.

The EFF had called for Tuesday’s sitting to be adjourned, with chief whip Floyd Shivambu speaking in Tsonga to cement his point.

But they were overruled when the majority of parties agreed that a chief whip's forum meeting should continue.

UDM MP Nqabayomzi K****wa said the business of the House should continue, though they would not be able to engage on some issues because there were no interpreters.
Click to expand...

More at :http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/parly-staff-threaten-to-storm-national-assembly-20151110
 
MPs fear for safety after workers storm committee rooms

Thulani Gqirana and Jenni Evans, News24

Cape Town - Members of Parliament have expressed concern over their safety, following disruptions by striking workers on Wednesday.

This after workers declared that no committee would sit on Wednesday until their demands were met.

Storming into various meeting rooms which had committees sitting, the workers blew vuvuzelas, whistles and sung until MPs abandoned their stations.

African National Congress, Democratic Alliance, Freedom Front Plus and Economic Freedom Fighters MPs agreed that it was unacceptable for work to be disrupted.

FF+ MP Pieter Groenewald said they needed to make sure the invasion did not happen again, and needed to inform security when they decided to reconvene.

“We don’t know if they are going to decide to be violent against us.”

In the police committee, which was attended by MPs and Deputy Police Minister Maggie Sotyu, the chairperson opted to take a break until the strikers moved on, and reconvened after 20 minutes.

But the committee could not continue working as most of the documents needed had "disappeared" during the workers' invasion.

Demands

Nehawu Parliament branch chairperson Sthembiso Tembe said they had been told they would not be paid, and refused to let anyone work while they were struggling for their demands.

“We are humbly asking the MPs to leave, this has nothing to do with them but we will not rest until our demands are met.”

MPs said it was against the law for committees to be disrupted.

Condemning the act, Sotyu said the chairpersons of committees needed to meet with Parliament leadership to sort out the issues with Nehawu, as stealing documents was a crime.

“If things continue the way they are now, it will be a serious problem as we have a lot of work to complete in Parliament.”

Water committee disrupted

Striking Parliament employees also drowned out the water committee trying dealing with the country's drought crisis. This was in spite of an interdict obtained against the workers to prevent such action.

''We are adjourned,'' said committee chairperson Lulu Johnson as about 100 protesters took over the room, clapping and singing.

The committee had just been told that Mpumalanga was about to become the fifth province to be declared a drought disaster zone, together with KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, North West and Free State.

The protesting group banged on tables where just a few minutes earlier committee members had demanded answers on what would be done by water used illegally by some mining companies, and allegations that the department had ignored the crisis for too long.

The group left after a few minutes. They are in dispute over outsourcing and security vetting.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/N...-after-workers-storm-committee-rooms-20151111
 
[video=youtube;0bfJKosIwRY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bfJKosIwRY[/video]
 
Riot police use stun grenades to disperse Parliamentary workers

Thulani Gqirana, Jenni Evans and Jenna Etheridge, News24

Parliament - Stun grenades were used to disperse around 200 striking parliamentary workers outside the National Council of Provinces on Wednesday morning.

A long line of riot police pushed their shields against singing and dancing workers on the steps and started removing them, warning them over a loud hailer to get out and leave the precinct.

Workers belonging to the National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union (Nehawu) tried to stand their ground, and chanted “we work here” as scuffles ensued.

The air was acrid with teargas as officers chased after people, and screams were could be heard.

News24 journalists on the scene said at least 12 stun grenades were thrown.

A man in a suit signed “time out” to the officers with his hands.

'Police must fall'

Workers, most in red Nehawu shirts, sang “Senzeni na" (What have we done?)

By 12:30, a large group had returned to the steps, chanting “Police must fall”.

Parliamentary staff - including committee secretaries, content advisers, cleaners and communication liaisons - downed tools on Friday. On Monday, they vowed to continue the strike until their demands were met.

The staff members, affiliated to Nehawu, were demanding a change in the performance bonus structure, among other things.

They want it to be based on annual packages, instead of 100% of the monthly salary agreed to earlier this year.

Other areas of concern include the security re-vetting staff, which has started in Parliament last month.

Parliament secretary Gengezi Mgidlana said on Tuesday they would implement a five-year-old interdict against striking workers, in a bid to force them to take their protest action outside the precinct.

This was so that proceedings at Parliament were not disrupted.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/N...es-to-disperse-parliamentary-workers-20151111
 
Confidential documents missing after workers disrupt police committee

Thulani Gqirana, News24

Parliament – Members of Parliament and the deputy minister of police have condemned the "disappearance" of documents during the sitting of a committee on Wednesday.

A few copies of the police committee's draft report on the enquiry against provincial police commissioners who had expressed their support for suspended National Commissioner Riah Phiyega disappeared after MPs were forced to leave the venue by striking workers.

The workers stormed the police committee on Wednesday afternoon, vowing not to let any work continue until their demands were met. This is the fourth day of the strike.

MPs were asked to leave the venue, and when they returned, found that some copies of the report they had been going through had disappeared from their desks.

Police deputy minister Maggie Sotyu said it was unacceptable that documents had disappeared in the middle of a meeting.

"Those documents are for the eyes and ears of MPs only until they are reported on. This is really unacceptable."

African National Congress MP Angeline Molebatsi also condemned the striking workers.

Some protesters had picked up the copies on the desks to fan themselves while they were singing and dancing in the Good Hope committee room.

The meeting was postponed until new copies could be made available for MPs.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/N...ter-workers-disrupt-police-committee-20151111
 
Hero's welcome for released parliamentary worker

Thulani Gqirana, Jenni Evans and Jenna Etheridge, News24

Cape Town – A parliamentary worker received a hero's welcome from his striking colleagues on Wednesday after being released by police officers in the parliamentary precinct.

The crowd lifted Sonwabile Ngxiza, a researcher and content specialist in the office of Deputy Speaker Lechesa Tsenoli, onto their shoulders and cheered at news that he would not be charged.

A smartly-dressed Ngxiza smiled despite the bruise on his head and drops of blood on his shirt.

Striking parliamentary workers had earlier expressed outrage at the use of riot police to remove them from the precinct on Wednesday afternoon.

Stun grenades

Officers used around 12 stun grenades and their shields to move approximately 250 workers affiliated with the National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union (Newahu) from the steps of the National Council of Provinces.

Some workers told News24 journalists on the ground that they were protesting peacefully and could have "taken over Parliament any time" if they had wanted to.

They disrupted a number of committee meetings on Wednesday morning.

ANC deputy chief whip Doris Dlakude told the crowd at one stage that "two wrongs don't make a right".

"You don't know whether those committees are dealing with your issues, some of them," she said, causing the crowd to jeer.

"Please comrades, please. Afford us an opportunity to handle the situation the best way we know."

Demands

She begged them to allow the afternoon sitting to go on and assured them that negotiations regarding their demands would continue.

Both she and DA parliamentary leader Mmusi Maimane had earlier negotiated with police officers for Ngxiza's release.

According to News24 journalist Jenni Evans, police officers said their instructions came from the Speaker.

Workers struck an agreement on Wednesday afternoon that they would be orderly and let business continue on condition that they weren't asked to leave the premises.

Ngxiza said: "No police can intimidate us".

Parliamentary staff - including committee secretaries, content advisers, cleaners and communication liaisons - downed tools on Friday. On Monday, they vowed to continue the strike until their demands were met.

They are demanding a change in the performance bonus structure, among other things.

They want it to be based on annual packages, instead of 100% of the monthly salary agreed to earlier this year.

Other areas of concern include the security re-vetting staff, which started in Parliament last month.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/heros-welcome-for-released-parliamentary-worker-20151111
 
schumi said:
ANC deputy chief whip Doris Dlakude told the crowd at one stage that "two wrongs don't make a right".

"Please comrades, please. Afford us an opportunity to handle the situation the best way we know."

Ngxiza said: "No police can intimidate us".

Other areas of concern include the security re-vetting staff, which started in Parliament last month.
Click to expand...

Seems to me that the ANC see the best way to handle this is to ignore the rule of law, and patently the staff are ignoring it anyway .....
 
Demand, demand, demand.

Seems to be the only word in the "new South African" dictionary.
 
The House carries on after stun grenades, protests

Jenni Evans, News24

Cape Town - The National Assembly sat as expected on Wednesday afternoon hours after stun grenades boomed in the precinct to keep protesting Parliament staff out.

They had threatened to disrupt proceedings if their demands were not met by 14:00 and as they gathered on the steps of the National Council of Provinces building ahead of the deadline, the police advanced. Protesters were expected to return on Thursday.

EFF MP Floyd Shivambu tried to have the sitting postponed, but some MPs wanted to carry on working.
ANC MP Doris Dlakude said they had received assurances from National Education and Health Workers Union (Nehawu) protesters that they would not disrupt Wednesday's proceedings.

On Tuesday employees had protested outside the House, singing and blowing vuvuzelas in the foyer and corridors.

But on Wednesday a few minutes before the sitting, Nehawu chairperson in parliament Sthembiso Tembe told workers to go home, wash their T-shirts, and return early on Thursday.

Parliament had revived an old interdict preventing the protest, but Nehawu was also applying for its own interdict against the police action.

DA MP Chief Whip John Steenhuisen said South Africa was in the middle of its biggest crisis in 10 years with a drought and unemployment and felt business should go ahead.

He added that it would not be right for politicians to inject themselves into an industrial process.
After listening to MPs say work must carry on, Deputy Speaker Lechesa Tsenoli ordered that the business of the day proceed.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/the-house-carries-on-after-stun-grenades-protests-20151111
 
Parliament gets second interdict against Nehawu

Jenni Evans, News24

Cape Town - Parliament has obtained a second interdict against the National Education Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) to stop them from further protests in the precinct.

Parliament's secretary Gengezi Mgidlana said this was after days of protests, which culminated in stun grenades used by police to clear singing employees off the steps of the National Council of Provinces Building.

Workers started protesting on Friday over the issue of performance bonuses which they want revisited, even though they have already signed an agreement, said Mgidlana.

The employees were violating the Labour Relations Act and a court order. They had opted for “unlawful industrial action” instead of declaring a dispute on the matter.

They had also been told there would be “no work no pay” during the protest.

On Tuesday a 2010 interdict preventing Nehawu protests at the precinct was revived when large groups sang outside the National Assembly doors.

Mgidlana said Speaker Baleka Mbete authorised that police be called in after four committees out of 17 were disrupted on Wednesday.

The portfolio committees on police, transport, water and sanitation and a joint standing committee on appropriations were abandoned when protesters entered the committee rooms singing.

Mgidlana said the appropriations committee was dealing with medium term budget appropriations which were very important, when protesters entered their committee room.

MPs complained about not being able to go about their business and some staffers said they were pulled out of their offices.

This was in violation of the Powers, Privileges and Immunities Act which states that a member of Parliament's work should not be disrupted, said Mgidlana.

"It is a criminal offence," he said. "Sadly we had to ask for the assistance of the [police]".

He said that Parliament had been declared an essential service, which meant members of the institution "in its entirety" cannot go on strike.

They can organise and be involved in collective bargaining, negotiations and elements of picketing until the arbitration stage.

He said Nehawu was trying to renegotiate performance bonuses even though they had already agreed on this issue.

It is the first time Parliament has a multi-year agreement in place, so Nehawu would have to wait until 2017 to revisit the issue, he added.

Parliament's chief legal adviser Zuraya Adhikarie told News24 after the briefing that Wednesday's interdict was not a lock out.

Nehawu members can enter the precinct, but they may not protest, or incite members to protest, or invite members to a meeting without permission from the Secretary of Parliament.

A meeting between Parliament's management and Nehawu took place on Wednesday evening.

Nehawu has vowed to return to Parliament on Thursday to carry on with its protests if its demands are not met.

News24
Source
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/parliament-gets-second-interdict-against-nehawu-20151111
 
Eleventy percent bonus for any public sector workers who strike.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X