NTI workers block entrance to North West Legislature over unpaid salaries

Employees of the North West Transport Investment (NTI) barricaded the entrance to the North West Provincial Legislature in Mahikeng.

They are demanding payment of their outstanding salaries.

A business Rescue Practitioner was appointed a while ago to run the affairs of the state-owned company.

However, workers say they are still not receiving salaries while their pensions and medical aid contributions have also not been paid to relevant institutions.

Roads were blockaded with buses as NTI bus operators came out in large numbers to have their demands for payment of their outstanding salaries heard.

Workers have also complained about the non-payment of their provident funds and medical aid contributions.

Driver Collen Kabelo Sehoshe says, “We’ve gone three months without salaries and wages. So we need a lot of things. We have outstanding Provident Funds for 18 months, a 6% increase in 2022 as well as a 7% in 2023 increase is still outstanding. So we came here to meet the premier, last week in Mabopane but he failed to meet us and that’s why it was important for us to come here.”

Provincial authorities say while a Business Rescue Practitioner was appointed to administer the finances of the ailing NTI, payments were not made to cover workers’ salaries but instead, other creditors were prioritised.

North West Public Safety and Transport Management HoD, Mpho Maleme says, ‘We promised the employees that we are going to give them money, which we did. But the challenge that we encountered is that immediately when the money was deposited into the account, they moved the money, and unfortunately, then we didn’t even have any powers to do anything within the account of the NTI because of section 140 of the Companies Act. but we are dealing with this challenge which we are at the finality of it.”