Durban — Police unions are not backing down until their demands are fully settled.
This was according to the SA Policing Union (Sapu) national spokesperson, Lesiba Tsobakgale.
He insisted that employers should pay the 10% increase without hesitation because public servants rendered their duties and delivered services to the public as regulated.
He said the strike would start on March 17.
Tsobakgale said the strike was the only way to get their demands met and advised the public to not panic about their safety since it was only police members who would be off duty who would take part in the strike.
“These workers all render very important and critical services to South African citizens. They also do their jobs with dedication, so the 10% in demand should not be a problem. Every employee is important and jobs should be equally prioritised,” said Tsobakgale.
He said they were also demanding a R1 000 housing allowance increase.
“Nothing has been put on the table by the employers, the only response we have received from them so far is that there is no money to settle these demands. We have over 34 000 public servants who are allowed to take part in the strike,” said Tsobakgale.
Public Servants Association (PSA) spokesperson Reuben Maleka said they did not condone the strike because people used essential services every day.
“We are in the process of making negotiations so that everyone comes out happy in the end.
“Even though we cannot confirm that public servants will get the 10% in the meantime, we want to ensure that the strike does not turn into a violent one,” said Maleka.
KwaZulu-Natal Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union secretary-general Nthabeleng Molefe said they were engaging with the union’s structures to determine a clear course of action.
“We are still awaiting a process wherein the Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) will try to settle the current impasse around the 2022 and 2023 wage agreement which has collapsed due to the government unilaterally implementing a 3% wage hike.
“Our demand is a 10% wage hike, informed by factors such as the fact that public servants have not been getting increases since 2019, and that the government reneged on the implementation of the third leg of the PSCBC Resolution 1 of 2018,” said Molefe.
KwaZulu-Natal violence monitor Mary de Haas believed the strike was a desperate measure by public servants to be heard because their needs had not been met for a long time.
“It is going to be tricky for the police to be part of the strike because of the type of work they do.
“Unions must make sure that the ones on duty are protected should the strike become violent,” said De Haas.
She said nepotism and corruption within the police management were the root cause of this situation.
National police spokesperson Colonel Athlenda Mathe had not commented by the time of going to press, saying she was still awaiting a response from Human Resources.
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