Unprecedented SABC strike action will hit the struggling South African public broadcaster from Thursday 2 November at 06:00 in the morning, after trade unions Bemawu and the Communication Workers Union (CWU) made good on its threat of last week to strike and on Monday served the SABC with a notice to embark on a protected strike.
SABC staffers getting ready to strike from Thursday are giving the SABC two options: Do you want black or colour bars used when SABC signals or programmes go off air due to work stoppage?
The rolling strike action, if not averted by the new permanent SABC board, will inflict more damage on the severely battered SABC.
The SABC that is once again hovering on the brink of financial collapse without a cash-injection of R3 billion from the government, is now facing looming strike action.
SABC staffers demand a 10% pay hike - far higher than South Africa's 6% inflation.
SABC staffers also demand a bonus 13th salary check in December despite the non-performing SABC posting a loss of R977 million. Bonuses are usually paid to reward good performance.
The SABC "offers" a 0% salary increase.
Hannes du Buisson, Bemawu president told Radio 702 that the freelancers which the SABC usually would rely on to do extra work in the case of a strike "has been ill-treated by the SABC to the extent that a number of them has taken the SABC to the CCMA."
"The SABC would most probably be able to most probably broadcast all of the repeats from a hundreds years ago that the public has seen a thousands times. Whether the SABC would be able to deliver news and current affairs is a different thing".
The SABC has been plagued by bad management, bad managerial decisions and upheaval at top executive and board level, with the government's Special Investigative Unit (SIU) currently conducting a wide-ranging probe into corruption, mismanagement and several dodgy contracts at the public broadcaster stretching back several years.
The trade unions on Friday agreed to let the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) try and mediate the wage dispute, but that seems to have failed.
"This is a serious concern for us," SABC spokesperson Kaizer Kganyago told SABC News, the only person who was interviewed on-air on SABC News (DStv 404) on Monday night, with no representatives from Bemawu or CWU who appeared.
"It was a surprise this afternoon when all of a sudden - before we could even go back and give a feedback - we already then get a notice for a strike,"said Kaizer Kganyago.
"We said to them: You know our financial situation as an organisation. Can we then discuss these issues?"
Kaizer Kganyago said the SABC "is surprised" at the planned strike action.
Kaizer Kganyago said the SABC is "not going to negotiate in newspapers. We are not going to negotiate on television. We are going to negotiate in a negotiating room."
If strike action hits, Kaizer Kganyago says the SABC "will make everything in our power to make sure that the programmes appear on radio and on television as planned".
Kaizer Kganyago said the SABC "still owes a lot of people a lot of money".
SABC board chairperson Bongumusa Makhathini on a statement issued by the SABC said the SABC had "noted with concern a notice to go on strike by employees affiliated to Bemawu and CWU over salary increases".
"The major priorities which emerged were the need to stabilise the financial situation and staff morale. Despite significant progress by the interim board in cutting the losses it inherited, the SABC still carries more debts than it can pay," said Bongumusa Makhathini.
"The SABC board is committed to working closely with the unions and all employees to ensure that the SABC is brought back to its former strength."
"We will uphold proper governance procedures in our interactions with the unions. It is common knowledge that the SABC is going through a financial crisis and that we have applied for a government guarantee that will, if approved, come with conditions, which we will have to adhere to."
"Amongst the things the board is looking at, are other concrete steps towards the financial stability of the corporation. The public should rest assured that programming, both on radio and TV, would be transmitted as planned," said Bongumusa Makhathini.
SABC board chairperson Bongumusa Makhathini on a statement issued by the SABC said the SABC had "noted with concern a notice to go on strike by employees affiliated to Bemawu and CWU over salary increases".
"The major priorities which emerged were the need to stabilise the financial situation and staff morale. Despite significant progress by the interim board in cutting the losses it inherited, the SABC still carries more debts than it can pay," said Bongumusa Makhathini.
"The SABC board is committed to working closely with the unions and all employees to ensure that the SABC is brought back to its former strength."
"We will uphold proper governance procedures in our interactions with the unions. It is common knowledge that the SABC is going through a financial crisis and that we have applied for a government guarantee that will, if approved, come with conditions, which we will have to adhere to."
"Amongst the things the board is looking at, are other concrete steps towards the financial stability of the corporation. The public should rest assured that programming, both on radio and TV, would be transmitted as planned," said Bongumusa Makhathini.
