A group of workers from Fruit & Veg City in Louis Trichardt were still picketing in front of the shop in Grobler Street on Tuesday, 1 February, with a list of demands. The workers have been striking since Friday, 28 January.
Mr Enos Mulovhedzi, representative of the workers' union, the National Transport Movement (NTM), said that despite the low turnout of people taking part in the protest action, they would continue with the strike until their demands were met. The workers' demands include negotiations around their working hours and leave days, incentive bonuses, UIF and annual salary adjustments.
Dressed in their work uniforms, the chanting workers insisted they get paid their annual incentive bonuses, which they say had always been paid to them in previous years without fail, until now. They also claim that Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) deductions were not being paid over, even though the money was deducted from their salaries every month, and that the management expected them to work without sufficient PPE supplies, as per the Covid-19 health regulations.
Mulovhedzi said that, despite the weakened economy because of the Covid pandemic, the company had had a good financial year. "The company has done well under the circumstances. It made good money; now it is time for us to be compensated. There is no rationale for those incentive bonuses to not be paid - that is why we are having this strike," he said.
The union's shop steward, Ms Leylah Patel, said they would continue to fight for the rights of their members and ensure that their demands were accepted and effected.
Fruit & Veg City's manager, Mr Niekie Dercksen, firmly denied the allegations that the employees' UIF deductions were not getting paid over. He also denied the allegations that employees did not have sufficient PPE to wear during working hours.
Dercksen said they could not meet the workers' demands of a 12% salary increase, travel allowances, a 12% employer contribution to their provident fund and a 13th cheque. "The business just cannot afford to pay bonuses at this time. We held a meeting with the workers and union in June last year (2021) where we explained our financial situation to them. The company is running at a loss. We even showed them the financial statements when they went to the CCMA. They can strike all they want, but it won't change the fact that there isn't money to pay incentive bonuses," he said.
In the meantime, the work is being distributed between the remaining seven workers who chose not to take part in the strike and the management itself. "Another employee, who was being intimidated by the strikers, decided to stay at home for the time being because he was too afraid to come to work, but we are doing our best to keep the business running," Dercksen said.