Striking South African state workers defied a court order to return to work on Monday and police fired rubber bullets to disperse strikers who were blocking entrances to a Johannesburg hospital. More than 60 protesters were arrested nation-wide for obstructing roads and destroying property in violent demonstrations.
A labour court on Saturday ordered thousands of health care workers and others deemed as providing essential services to return to their jobs to lesson the blow of a walkout that has shut schools and caused chaos at hospitals.
Police fired rubber bullets at workers blocking access to a Johannesburg hospital. "The strikers resisted arrest at one hospital and police fired rubber bullets to disperse the crowd. We are not aware of any injuries," said Colonel Eugene Opperman, a Gauteng police spokesman. The strike started last Wednesday among a coalition of unions representing 1.3 million state workers that include teachers, police, prison guards, immigration officials and clerks.
The court order applies to a portion of the total, mostly health workers and other sectors seen as "essential". The injunction also prevents the striking workers from assaulting colleagues who report to work and intimidating members of the public who are seeking services. Protests turned violent last week, leading police to fire rubber bullets at protesters blocking roads and hospitals.
The image of the unions has taken a blow, with the health minister calling strikers "murderers" for abandoning care of the sick. They have angered parents who have been forced to care for children who would normally be in school. Analysts expect a deal before September, which would minimise the impact of the strike in Africa's largest economy. The African National Congress government is under pressure to reach a deal in order to appease its long-standing ally of organised labour, while unions are facing pressure to reach an agreement from rank and file members losing pay for being off the job.
"Government wishes to reassure South Africans that the impasse will be resolved sooner rather than later," government spokesman Themba Maseko told reporters. Financial traders say the strike has not affected the rand or bond market but they are worried about the economic impact of a labour stoppage that extends into next month.
Any agreement to end the dispute is likely to swell state spending by about 1 to 2 percent, forcing the government to find new funds just as it tries to bring a deficit totalling 6.7 percent of gross domestic product (GDP). The unions are demanding an 8.6 percent wage rise, more than double the inflation rate, and 1,000 rand ($137.1) a month as a housing allowance.
The government says it cannot afford the demands and has offered a 7 percent wage hike and 700 rand for housing. No new talks between the unions and government have been scheduled to date. In industrial unrest, more than 600 workers at Exxaro's mineral sands unit in South Africa went on strike on Monday, a union said, while 1,700 planned to do the same at a Rio Tinto-BHP Billiton joint venture. The National Union of Mineworkers said workers at Exxaro's KwaZulu Natal sand units were demanding a 14 percent rise in wages. The company has offered an 8 percent increase.
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