Essential services still running

Johannesburg – The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) confirmed on Tuesday that on-duty public servants involved in essential services did not participate in the nationwide wage protest marches held today.
   
Cosatu Gauteng provincial secretary Dumisani Dakile said employees providing essential services attended to their responsibilities and did not take part in the marches.
   
On Tuesday, hundreds of thousands of public servants belonging to Cosatu affiliated unions and the Independent Labour Caucus (ILC) took to the streets as workers embarked on marches over a wage dispute that threatens to shut down basic public services.
   
Unions have yet to set the date for a full-blown industrial action if government does not meet their demands.
   
Government is offering a 7.0% wage increase - from the previous offer of 6.5% - and an unchanged housing allowance of R630.
   
The unions are demanding an 8.6% wage increase and a R1 000 housing allowance.
   
Dakile said essential services workers who were off today could take part in Tuesday's marches.
   
He said government was trying to frustrate unions by failing to sign essential services agreements, which would allow nurses, doctors and police to strike.
   
An essential service refers to a service that, if interrupted, would endanger or inconvenience the life or the health of people.
   
Parliamentary services, the South African Police Service and health service are essential services.
   
Dakile said the union federation was consulting with its lawyers on the participation of workers involved in the provision of essential services.
   
"We have not received legal opinion yet," he said. It is a sensitive matter.
   
Dakile said unions had proposed that, in the event of a full-blown strike, 25% of the workforce in essential services should work.
   
The government, he said, had not responded to this proposal.   

-  I-Net Bridge