City of Cape Town request interdict against SAMWU strike

By Rhodé Marshall
23 August 2007

The City of Cape Town has applied for an interdict against the planned strike by the South African Municipal Workers Union.

“The City of Cape Town is approaching the labour court, on Monday for a ruling on which of the issues that the labour union SAMWU is raising they may strike on, if any,” says Spokesperson for the City of Cape Town Pieter Cronjé.

He says that they will also ask the court to confirm that municipal workers in essential like, electricity, water, health and emergency services may not strike.

“We have opted for this route to get clarity as in our view many of the issues raised by SAMWU are matter that should be resolved by arbitration not by strike action,” says Cronjé.

SAMWU says they intend to fight the interdict as they have a constitutional right strike.

“We don’t like the way the city is going by doing things,” says SAMWU media officer, Anna Majavu.

She added that they won’t allow the city management to bully them into a corner.