Speaking to OFM News, Vincent Diphoko, who is the provincial secretary of the union, says they fail to understand what is illegal about the strike. He says workers want to be told when they are going to be paid their pension fund by the troubled municipality who allegedly deducted the monies from workers for at least seven months without paying it over to where it's due. Diphoko says they will not allow the employer to be harsh to employees who want what’s rightfully due to them.

"The employers must pay the pension fund money and other benefits and this matter will be resolved because they have been deducting it from the workers’ salaries. So what is difficult to pay it over, whilst you have that money because you have deducted it? What is so [difficult] to take that money and pay it over or make a commitment and just come to workers and address them? So you can’t be shy to address your mess because it’s their mess so to address these issues it's either they must pay what is due to members and members will go back to work,” he adds.

OFM News previously reported that (Samwu) lambasted the non-payment of municipal workers' pension funds to third parties.

Diphoko told OFM News that over R30 million is owed to the municipal workers by at least three municipalities, including the Koster-based Kgetleng River. He said despite the constant plea and engagements with relevant municipalities and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs in the province, their call seems to have fallen on deaf ears.

Diphoko claimed that Samwu has since opened criminal cases against the accounting officers in those municipalities, including Koster, where municipal workers are on strike over the non-payment of their third-party contributions.

OFM News