The strike action by workers at Simba Chips in Isando has been suspended after the employer agreed to meet their demands.
According to Jacob Photlaki, who is one of the organisers from the Casual Workers Advice Forum, the company had previously refused to make casual workers permanent but they have since come to the party after the workers threatened to withdraw their labour.
“The company was running away (sic) to make these workers permanent,” he said.
“The strike has been suspended because the company has reserved the positions of the workers,” he added.
The Mail and Guardian reported on Tuesday, 17 April 2018 that Simba Chips, which is part of multinational company, PepsiCo South Africa, had colluded with labour broking company, Adcorp Blu to keep workers as casual employees. This is in contravention of the Labour Relations Act that stipulates that after a period of three months, employers are compelled to make casual workers permanent employees.
Photlaki spoke to Political Analysis South Africa on Friday, 20 April 2018, and said that the workers are still waiting for an arbitration date from the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) before the process to make the workers permanent is complete.
Meanwhile, Simba Chips has denied claims of labour violations at its plants saying, however, that they do take allegations seriously.
“Reports also allude to allegations of workplace impropriety at the facility which are unsubstantiated. Simba takes these claims extremely seriously. We are committed to ensuring our workplaces are safe and inclusive. All allegations will be subject to a thorough investigation,” said a Simba Chips spokesperson in a statement.
