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Samwu gearing for strike

Johannesburg - The SA Municipal Workers' Union (Samwu) has filed notice that it intends embarking on a national strike which could begin at the end of the week, it said on Monday.

"The union is mobilising towards a strike, which will begin as soon as this week," spokesperson Tahir Sema said.

In a previous statement, Sema said Samwu would protest against the "dubious actions" of the SA Local Government Association (Salga).

"We have learnt with dismay that Salga has filed leave to appeal the wage curve victory Samwu has secured, even though Samwu... won an outright victory to increase workers' salary scales," he said.

"This judgment, which Salga wants to appeal, was handed down by the Labour Court in Johannesburg. It brought to the fore blatant dishonesty displayed by Salga officials when dealing with municipal workers."

Salga could not immediately be reached for comment.

The Labour Court upheld a wage curve agreement between the collective bargaining parties, signed in April 2010, dealing with different categories of municipalities.

Under the agreement, some workers would receive back pay from September 2009.

Sema said an appeal would probably waste millions in taxpayers' money.

He said Salga was using the application to appeal as a tactic to delay the process, and he said this could lead to instability in the sector.

"It is also not unlikely that the current instability could quickly turn into a second Marikana tragedy."

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