Telkom and Union struggle continues
According to Telkom the impact of today’s strike was minimal with around 21 000 out of the company’s 25 000 full-time workforce reporting for duty.
Whilst many duty-bound employees manned their posts today it is still not an accurate indication of whether the issue is close to being resolved.
Telkom executive for human resources, Charlotte Moekena, emphasized that the company remained committed to resolving the impasse with the Communication Workers Union and Solidarity. The South African Communications’ Union has accepted Telkom’s initial as well as the revised offer that was presented to the three recognized unions last Friday.
Implementation for the approximately 11 000 non-unionised and SACU members will be effective from 1 April 2006 but as yet Solidarity and the Communications Workers Union are not included.
Moekena stated that Telkom are waiting for the other two unions to strike a deal with the incumbent in order for all employees to benefit from the increases.
“The onus is on the leadership of organized labour to come to an agreement with the Company before 31 March so that we will be able to roll-out the Company’s offers to all our employees without delay,” added Mokoena.
The offer on the table has not been laid out in full but Telkom have stated that many of the lowest paid employees can expect an increase in gain-sharing from an initial 256% to over 400%.
The new offer also addresses the issue of disparities in salaries among workers within each level of the Company’s employment structure.
According to Solidarity there is no concrete offer on the table and hence no communication between the parties.
The likelihood of a quick resolution looks slight as both sides seem to be waiting for the other to react.
A recent poll on the consumer website MyADSL reveals that over 80% of the respondents supported the strike action, giving an indication that many Telkom consumers have sympathy with the employees’ plight.
Dirk Hermann, spokesperson for Solidarity, said that workers will return to work tomorrow, but that there is much more action in store unless an agreement is reached.
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