Some Neasa members still locking out workers

KARL GERNETZKY SOME member companies of the National Employers Association of SA (Neasa) continue to lock out workers in the metals and engineering sector, demanding that unions return to bargaining.

Neasa CEO Gerhard Papenfus said yesterday that fewer than 100 companies continued to lock out workers, but there were no meetings planned between the association and unions after a wage deal was reached with some employers last month.

Neasa refused to sign a wage deal reached between the Steel Engineering Industries Federation of SA (Seifsa), the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) and five other unions within the Metals and Engineering Bargaining Council.

The three-year agreement is for an increase of between 8% and 10%, but Neasa said it had been sidelined during negotiations and its members could not afford an increase of more than 8%. It said it would challenge in court the extension of the agreement to companies that were not party to the deal.

Neasa has made it clear no pressure would be placed on members to keep their gates closed.

The number of affected employees is unclear but the majority of companies Neasa represents are small and medium enterprises employing fewer than 50 people.

Solidarity head of metals Marius Croucamp said yesterday a number of obstacles were being addressed within the Metals and Engineering Bargaining Council, including the audit, before requesting the extension of the agreement.

There was concern that a Neasa interdict could be successful, Mr Croucamp said.

Solidarity, the second-biggest union represented within the council, had not embarked on strike.

According to Solidarity, the Department of Labour had not been approached by employers to extend the agreement.

The department is auditing membership numbers at companies within the council — more than 10,000 of them.

Neasa said it would legally challenge any extension of the agreement, and would first petition the labour minister not to extend the wage deal.

Numsa spokesman Castro Ngobese said yesterday that the number of companies locking out workers had been declining.

Numsa and the Congress of South African Trade Unions had promised to boycott the products of companies instituting lock outs.

The associations had sought to bind the agreements with provisions aimed at growing the sector, such as relaxation of minimum wages at new companies. Seifsa later dropped this demand, after an agreement with unions to continue discussing the future of collective bargaining in the sector in an industry forum.