Briefs
Sasol enquiryThe Sasol explosion inquiry that killed 10 people has been postponed to March next year. Initial indications are that when a worker disconnected a pipe of flammable gas, a spark ignited the gas and caused the explosion.
Cosatu questions Telkom BEE deal
Cosatu has criticised the sale of 15,1% of US-Malaysian company Thintana’s shares in Telkom, to an “˜empowerment consortium’. It described this move as benefiting only a “tiny elite”.As Numsa News went to print, it again attacked the sale, this time because the Public Investment Commission (PIC), the body that manages the pension fund for public sector employees, said it would buy the share while the consortium put together the money.Cosatu said the PIC was investing R6.6bn of workers’ money without consultation with members of the Fund and despite union opposition to the privatisation of Telkom.In effect “the hard-earned money of the poor is being used to facilitate a deal which will pour millions of rands into the pockets of the very rich.”The trade union federation reiterated its call for Telkom to be “taken back into state ownership and run as an efficient, affordable service for the people, and not as a device for amassing huge profits for a small minority.”
It’s all in the label – buy local!
Sactwu’s hopes to tie major clothing retailers to a commitment to buy local have been dashed after Woolworths, Foschini, Edcon (Edgars, Sales House and Jet) and Truworths pulled out of their discussions. Sactwu fears that these retailers, who had claimed that 75% of their stock was local, will now increase their imports.Meanwhile negotiations are continuing with Mr Price, Massmart (Game, Dions, Makro), Qeenspark.When you spend your bonus, watch that label!
It’s bonus time!
It’s that time of the year again when most workers receive a bonus. This is whatyou will get in each sector:
auto – 8.33% of your annual wage
tyre – 8.33% of your annual wage
motor – 2 weeks bonus
engineering – your bonus is worked out like this:- for a 6-day week: your actual ordinary weekly wage rate x 52 weeks x 8.33% x number of shifts worked 283- for a 5-day week: your actual ordinary weekly wage rate x 52 weeks x 8.33% x number of shifts worked 234
(NB – 8.33% is not a magic number – it is really just one twelfth of your annual wage. If you divide one by twelve to get a percentage, you will get 8,33%)
STOP PRESS: Tiger Wheels, Babelegi, plans to retrench 200 workers in December.