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Oct 12 (Reuters) - South Africa’s leading business groups on Wednesday warned that the ongoing strike at logistics utility Transnet would significantly impact Africa’s most advanced economy.
Two unions representing the majority of workers at Transnet have rejected wage increases between 3-4% and called for a strike, which began last Thursday. The unions are demanding wage increases that would at least match the country’s year-on-year inflation rate, which was 7.6% in August.
The strike has hobbled Transnet’s freight rail operations and services at ports, including one of Africa’s busiest harbours at Durban.
In a joint statement on Wednesday, trade associations the Business Unity South Africa (BUSA) and Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) said the strike was damaging the country’s supply chains and reputation.
“Whilst this is firstly an industrial relations dispute, we must also recognise that there are significant knock-on implications for the economy as a whole,” the organisations said.
The job boycott was impacting the importation of medical items and key inputs to the chemical and mining industries, they added.
“Business is also concerned if this lasts more than a few days, cargo ships will not just skip slots at South African ports, but start taking South African ports out of schedules in the months ahead,” the BUSA and BLSA warned.
On Wednesday, Transnet negotiators were holding another round of talks with the United National Transport Union (UNTU) and the South African Transport and Allied workers Union (SATAWU), mediated by a state labour agency.
South Africa’s ministers responsible for labour, state enterprises and agriculture on Wednesday jointly called for the urgent resolution of the Transnet wage dispute, saying the strike was impacting the export of commodities and threatening jobs.
“Government is extremely concerned about the negative impact on the South African economy, particularly those sectors that are dependent on Transnet for their logistical services,” the ministers said in a joint statement. (Reporting by Nelson Banya in Harare Editing by Matthew Lewis)
