NUMSA furious over alleged racial attack

By Marthe van der Wolf
24 October 2007

The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) is furious at the garage owner and a supervisor at Simons Auto Centre in Bellville, Cape Town. The two allegedly fastened a worker last Friday with ropes and assaulted him.

This allegedly happened after the worker, Michael Ladlokova, asked why he did not receive his promised wage increase.

“The questions landed him in a hospital bed with blindly swollen eyes and reportedly serious facial injuries,” says NUMSA spokesperson Mziwakhe Hlangani.

NUMSA has instructed their lawyer to take the matter up with the Labour Court.

Employees at the garage, who witnessed the assault, boycotted the place as they fear their bosses.

“They stayed away from work until the union intervened,” says Hlangani.

The giant service workshop has been the scene of racial incidents before. Last year, member s of the union were mobilized to demand for the same employer to end racism at the workplace.