Footwear settlement reached - Sactwu

Johannesburg - The SA Clothing and Textile Workers' Union (Sactwu) has settled a wage dispute in the footwear industry, the trade union said on Tuesday.

"This comes after footwear employers tabled an improved wage offer last week, following a meeting held with them the previous week," general secretary Andre Kriel said in a statement.

Sactwu members accepted the offer on Friday and they returned to work on Monday.

Members of the National Union of Leather and Allied Workers (Nulaw) began striking earlier this month and Sactwu joined the protected national strike.

The unions wanted a minimum pay rise of 7.75% across the board. They wanted employers to set up a fund to help re-train employees should their work be replaced by new technology and machinery.

They also wanted employers to fast-track setting up a reference pricing system for the footwear industry, under the auspices of the SA Revenue Service.

This would help customs officials at ports of entry deal with under-invoicing, and stop counterfeit and illegal imports from entering the country.

Kriel on Tuesday said the settlement package reached was eight percent, covering a wage increase and an improved annual bonus.

The wage increases would be effective on July 1, he said.