Workers at the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) have threatened to march to the office of the Communications Minister as part of their efforts to intensify the nationwide strike action at the government’s ICT Company.
The government IT workers are demanding a 7.5% salary increase coupled with non-financial benefits, while the employer is offering 5%.
The State Information Technology Agency SITA workers are demanding an inflation linked 7.5% salary increase coupled with non financial benefits while the employer is offering 5% percent which they’ve rejected vowing to intensify the nationwide #SITAStrike #SABCNews pic.twitter.com/pAKceTJWAD
— Katlego Legodi (@KatlegoLegodi_) October 16, 2023
SITA is the government IT service provider at Home Affairs, South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) and South African Police Service (SAPS) offices, among others.
Public Servants Association of South Africa (PSA) SITA chief negotiator, Peter Mngomezulu, has also accused the employer of negotiating in bad faith.
“Cost of living is too high. The workers cannot even afford public transport, the food prices are high, inflation (is) high. They pay a lot of money for bonds. We cannot accept 5%, it’s an insult. The employer must come up with a better offer. They are pleading poverty, but we are saying they are negotiating in bad faith because they don’t come with the financial books.”
Meanwhile, SITA says what the workers are demanding is unaffordable, as head of Corporate Affairs, Tlali Tlali, elaborates.
“It doesn’t take us far if we look at what’s in the kitty at the moment and make demands that there is money available and the employer must pay when the effect of that, in the long run, would mean that the business will not be able to sustain itself, which could result in retrenchments. It’s not true that there is R6.6 billion but the revenue of R6 billion that the country has to use to sustain the business going forward.”
More details in the report below:
