Cape Town — The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) will hold meetings with the members at Ford South Africa after an interdict of their strike forcing workers to return to work.
The workers at Ford decided to strike as they felt they deserved their fair share of the profits, in addition to their performance bonuses. However, the Labour Court declared the strike as unlawful and unprotected, EWN reported.
NUMSa has been ordered to do all things necessary to ensure that workers comply with their employment contracts and return to their posts.
“NUMSA is an organisation established in terms of the law, we operate by way of the law, we respect the law. We have gone to court, and if the court had decided that we go back to law, then so be it. We have received this court order this morning in circumstances where we were already at the picket line,” NUMSA legal officer, Vivani Shezi, said.
He said the complexities of the production at Ford means workers could not return to work immediately and the agreement is that workers will return to work on Monday.
Numsa has agreed to comply with the court order halting its strike at Ford SA. According to Regional Legal Officer Vivani Shezi, workers will resume work on Monday, as the order was granted while they were already on the picket line earlier today. @NqobileMadlala_ reports.… pic.twitter.com/i9ljn0F8aq
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) July 5, 2024
NUMSA has been ordered to do all things necessary and reasonably possible to ensure that workers comply with their contracts of employment and return to their posts.
However, according to the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU)’s spokesperson, Trevor Shaku, said that workers had rejected this.
“They have rejected the ruling and they want to continue with the strike on Monday. There will be a series of consultations throughout the weekend and NUMSA and the workers will advise one another, and we will hear from them, as a federation, what decision they have taken,” said Shaku.
NUMSA also said that an appeal of the court’s decision could not be ruled out following the labour court’s decision. The interim interdict prevents workers from taking part in or instigating any strike action, SABC News reported.
In a statement, Ford says further production disruptions will have a profound impact on the company’s operations in South Africa and the economy, urging the workers to return to work.
According to IOL, Ford SA’s spokesperson Minesh Bhagaloo said that consistency in production is vital when it makes investments, and the union action that affects manufacturing also adversely affects South Africa’s global competitiveness.
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
