Confusion over eThekwini ‘illegal’ strike

IT WAS unclear yesterday if striking eThekwini Municipality workers had adhered to a Durban High Court order to desist from violent action during their “illegal” strike which left the CBD trashed and rubbish strewn in streets.

The City on Thursday obtained the interdict against striking workers, mostly members of the South African Municipal Workers' Union, which called off the strike over fears workers might face disciplinary action.

Yesterday the City's communications department released a statement saying eThekwini Municipality was “concerned about the impact the unlawful strike action” had on service delivery and had “put in place emergency contingency plans to minimise service disruptions”.

Security personnel had been sent to “strategic locations to monitor and safeguard critical infrastructure” and police – metro and SAPS – have been urged “to adopt a no-nonsense approach to those who abuse the right to strike”.

The municipality said it was “instituting disciplinary action” against employees who were identified committing “serious forms of misconduct”.

It said prolonged water outages had been exacerbated by the strike and electricity supply and refuse collection had also been affected in some areas, adding that teams were “working around the clock to restore supply”.

Waste collection services had been disrupted and the City asked residents “not to take out their refuse until further notice”. Garden refuse sites have also been temporarily closed.

There were no signs of the strike in progress when Independent Media drove around the CBD yesterday.

When this reporter tried to call the union's eThekwini regional secretary, Xolani Dube, yesterday afternoon, the background noise of people singing struggle songs made it impossible to communicate.

Samwu provincial secretary Nokubonga Dinga, who was also not in Durban, said she would check with the union leadership, “because as far as we know the strike is not continuing”, and shop stewards were urging members to return to work because they “were not protected”.