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Pretoria - Members of the National Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) are meeting with the University of Pretoria (UP) on Wednesday following deadlocked negotiations and the threat of intensified strike action.
Ntsako Nombelani
Ntsako Nombelani, Nehawu's national organiser for higher education, said that the university gave into a meeting, not willingly, but because of the mounting pressure after the union's members closed two of the big entrances at the university.
The university said it would comment on the matter later.
Nombelani said the meeting between the union's leadership and UP vice-chancellor Professor Cheryl de la Rey would look at ways to unlock the impasse between the two.
Addressing workers who have been singing and dancing intermittently at the engineering gate while the meeting was underway, Nombelani said the university was now looking at the numbers - the affordability of a 7.5% salary increase and the affordability of a 13th cheque.
He said this was not looked at before the meeting.
'This is a victory'
Nombelani said the university agreed to give the union full participatory rights in relation to the appointment of a medical aid broker, as well as allowing Nehawu to benchmark and compare available medical schemes which will benefit their members.
According to Nehawu the university agreed that there must be a forum where post-retirement medical aid and study benefits can be discussed.
"We have made a lot of progress and finally our members will return to work as soon as we sign an agreement which is agreeable," said Nombelani.
"This is a victory."
Nehawu leadership will be meeting again with the university at 15:00 and if members were unhappy with the proposal offered by UP, the strike action would be strengthened, he said.
"If members are not happy we will intensify the struggle and lobby other members of society to come and empower us so that we are reinforced."
Deadlock in negotiations
On Tuesday, Nehawu leadership and UP management reached a deadlock in negotiations.
This is not the first time that negotiations between the union and the university have deadlocked since the strike started about a week ago.
Nehawu said whilst it relaxed its stance, the university would not be uprooted on their offer and refused to change their position.
University spokesperson Candice Jooste said at the time that talks had deadlocked, despite its willingness to negotiate in good faith.
"The university remains convinced that its offer of a 7% general salary increase, as well as an additional R3 000 gratuity payment, is reasonable and fair given the current economic conditions, especially as employees are already earning above the industry average," said Jooste.
She added that the no-work, no-pay principle is currently in effect.
Week-long strike
The strike started last week and there was a brief clash between a group of Nehawu members and police on Friday afternoon after members split into two groups.
While the one group demonstrated peacefully, other members tried to gain entry onto the university's campus where they were met by police who retaliated with teargas and stun grenades.
Some Nehawu members, however, managed to get through the police cordon, while others retreated and threw rocks and bricks at the police.
Three Nehawu members were arrested.
The clash between demonstrators and police was short-lived as the regional leadership quelled the situation.
Nehawu members threatened to close down the university on its open day last Saturday. This was prevented by a court interdict obtained by the university.
The interdict conditions included that Nehawu members not picket on the campus and disrupt students or staff. They were also not allowed to picket within 50m from any university entrance.
This was relaxed on Monday afternoon as a show of good faith by both parties going forward into negotiations.
It is understood that the university allowed Nehawu members to demonstrate at the engineering gate, on the one side of the pavement.
"The university respects workers' right to protest, and appeals to them to do so within the confines of the law and in accordance with the interdict obtained from the High Court, by the university," said Jooste.
