800 university staff to go on strike

East London - More than 800 Walter Sisulu University (WSU) workers will go on strike on Wednesday over non-payment of salaries, according to a report on Wednesday.

The Ibika (Butterworth) and Buffalo City campuses resolved to down tools indefinitely from Wednesday, the Daily Dispatch reported.

About 2 000 staff members were informed on Friday that they will not be paid this month.

WSU human resources acting executive director Siyabulela Mnyaiza said the institution had to delay salary payments.

'No pay, no work'

“This is due to the university’s inability to raise sufficient capital to meet her financial obligations,” said Mnyaiza, who downplayed the non-payments as “delays”.

The workers that decided to go on strike belong to the National Health and Allied Workers' Union (Nehawu).

The union said staff had also discovered that no medical aid contributions had been made since September.

Nehawu’s Ibika chairperson, Zuki Memani, said: “The employer always says ‘no work, no pay’. So now we say ‘no pay, no work’".

“It’s sad to say that we have also discovered that workers’ third party contributions have not been paid since September, so this time around I am unable to say we will go back to work once we get paid because there are other issues involved.”

WSU spokesperson Angela Church confirmed to the Daily Dispatch on Tuesday that Nehawu had informed the university that its members would suspend services at Buffalo City and Butterworth campuses.

- SAPA