Experts have warned that the knock-on effect of prolonged labour strikes will harm the economy in the long run.
|||Cape Town - Bus strikes, service delivery protests and marching teachers - it is the time of the year that commuters and businesses have come to dread.
And now experts and economists have warned that an annual pattern of prolonged strikes could have dire consequences for South Africa’s economy.
National transport strikes since Friday saw bus services, such as Golden Arrow and UCT’s Jammie Shuttles, across Cape Town suspended or stripped to skeleton staff.
On Wednesday, queues snaked around taxi ranks, train stations and UCT shuttle stops as commuters waited for hours to catch rides into work or school.
“The current bus strike is really affecting us students, hope things get back to normal sooner,” tweeted @bethuelpooe117m.
“My bosses said I shouldn’t go to work until the bus strike ends,” said @NomzamoThomas.
Hector Bam said it has been a nightmare. The Gugulethu resident travels by bus to go work in Montague Gardens. But he said he has been forced to take a taxi, which has been more than just an inconvenience.
“We had already paid to take the bus, now I must pay more… So close to the end of the month, we can’t afford this. I’m borrowing money just to go to work.”
Bam is frustrated with the bus drivers, who he feels are bleeding him dry with their strike action. While the strike is meant to hurt big businesses, he felt like he was the real victim.
“Everyone here where I live is having problems… My wife couldn’t get into work, and we were lucky that her friend gave her a lift.”
Daniella Wheatley said it took her three hours to get home last night. The Mitchells Plain mother-of-three has had to resort to using taxis to get to and from work.
She said the taxis were overcrowded because there was such a high demand for alternative transport at the moment and she had found herself standing in long queues just to get home.
“Last night I got home at 8pm… I have three daughters that are waiting for me.”
Viola Manuel, executive director of the Cape Chamber of Commerce, said “strike season” at this time of the year had become such a common occurrence that businesses had begun to anticipate it.
“They have even started considering letting their employees work from home.”
She said the transport strikes were incredibly disruptive and crippled the productivity of local businesses.
“If we cannot deliver our goods and products on time and at a reasonable price, international investors will take their money somewhere else.”
The knock-on effect would be that local businesses would be forced to cut back. Instead of expanding and creating new jobs, they would have to scrap the few jobs that are available.
She added that it wasn’t just businesses who had to take responsibility for the country’s economy, but the unions, too. “We have to start looking at the impact of what we are doing, especially the way we are negotiating wages - there is clearly something significantly wrong.”
South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) chairperson Wayne Louw acknowledged that strike action had become a common sight at this time of the year.
“As a union we must apologise to the commuters, but in the same breath - look at our members’ interests, all we want is a living wage.”
He said it wasn’t the unions prolonging strike action, and as a result, disrupting South Africa’s economy, but the companies who refused to agree to their demands. - Cape Argus