By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
South African Commercial Catering and Allied Workers Union (SACCAWU) confirmed an indefinite strike at all Massmart stores commencing on Friday.
Workers are also pushing for a consumer boycott, with protests outside various stores.
The Massmart Group of companies include Mass Warehouse (Makro, Game, Makro Fruitspot); Massbuild – (Builders Warehouse, Builders Express, Builders Trade Depot, Builders Superstores); Mass Cash – (Rhino Cash and Carry, Jumbo Cash and Carry, Cambridge) representing 229 stores nationally.
In a statement, the union said it had secured certificates of non-resolution of disputes from the Commission for Conciliation Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), to embark on a protected national strike at various stores under the Massmart Group.
“Before the issuing of these certificates by the CCMA; Saccawu has been involved in LRA Section 150 facilitation sessions wherein the company has shown little interest in resolving the labour disputes at hand.
These sessions date as far back as March 2021. This has left the union with no option but to galvanise a massive indefinite strike in this Group,” the union said.
The union said the thorny issues include a wage and working dispute at Massbuild. Saccawu is demanding that employees be paid R500 Across The Board (ATB) increases, while Massbuild is offering only a R320 (4,1 %) increase.
“Other areas of dispute involve unfair labour practice wherein the company is placing workers on unpaid 7 days isolation, whenever they have been embarking on lunch time pickets that were a build up to this national strike,” Saccawu said.
According to the union, another dispute related to mass retrenchments of workers as a result of the Group’s Store Reorganisation exercise, leading to 380 workers being laid off.
“The other leg of this dispute involves a unilateral change to terms and conditions of remaining workers shifted across other stores.
“The remaining workers affected by the Store Reorganisation have seen reduction in working hours and days that is accompanied by a significant reduction of wages and benefits of these workers,” the union said.
Last year Massmart embarked on the reorganisation of Game stores in January in a bid to return the business to profitability. The move led to retrenchments. Saccawu appealed the dismissals in the Labour Court and lost.
At the time, the company said it had tried to assist Saccawu to escape its predicament, by communicating that it was prepared to re-employ previously retrenched employees in the 1200 vacant positions that were still available.
The union said their petition for leave to appeal at the Labour Court was granted on Monday (15 November 2021).
Meanwhile Massmart group said it would like to confirm that it has not yet received notification of strike action from Saccawu as required by the Labour Relations act.