SRA WORKERS TO TURN UP THE HEAT IN ONGOING STRIKE

MBABANE – Like a chef in a kitchen, SRA employees are planning to turn up the heat.

SRA is an acronym for Swaziland Revenue Authority. Members of the Swaziland Revenue Authority Workers Union (SRAWU) yesterday met to deliberate on a way forward in their fight for a 13.3 per cent salary increase. Reports of the meeting were confirmed by the SRAWU Secretary General, Moses Masilela, during an interview yesterday. He said he would brief this reporter later on new strategies they would engage, as the meeting was set to continue way into the night. At the time of compiling this report at 7pm, the meeting was still ongoing. Masilela stated that none of their members were at work as they were still on strike. He stated that they were trying to draw up a strategy as they last met on Thursday. To his knowledge, only management and those who were part of the contingency plan were working. Masilela revealed that a study conducted on the demands they made to the SRA management would cost the organisation over a million Emalangeni monthly.

He explained that the E11 000 demand was only for the lowest paid employees, which he said were in Grade I and added that others in the union already earned more than that. “Those who conducted the study on the 6.5 per cent we want, said it amounted to E1.3 million per month,” Masilela explained. SRA employees are already enjoying a 6.8 per cent cost-of-living adjustment which was given to all Category A parastatals. What troubled the union was that a circular giving the organisation’s top six management 20 per cent increment was issued. Masilela stated that another issue was that they were seemingly not treated like a Category A parastatal when it came to payments, while they were when they had to collect tax. He made an example of other parastatals in the same category, whose workers received a 13th cheque while they did not. “We are a Category A parastatals when we collect tax but when it comes to payment it is not so, we do not even get benefits like the others,” Masilela explained.

He stated that the only benefit they had was medical aid, which was sanctioned by the International Labour Organisation (ILO). Yesterday, there was no picketing at the Ngwenya Border Gate as non-unionised employees were found working. There was one customs officer assisting people who were exiting the country, while there were about four Immigration officers checking passports. The queue was moving at a fairly fast rate as people spent less than 10 minutes inside the Departure Entry point. The SRA Director Communications, Vusi Dlamini, could not be reached for comment as his mobile phone was not answered when called several times yesterday. The strike started on Tuesday, with the workers picketing for about two hours at their various workstations. They then left their places of work at around 2pm as they prepared to engage in a full strike the following day. On this very day, the SRA Commissioner General, Dumisani Masilela, issued a statement where he advised all traders to fast-track the importation or exportation of their goods before the commencement of the industrial action. The commissioner general stated that they would continue to operate for normal hours, however, with minimal staff. He also stated that they would open three inland service centres, namely; Manzini, Matsapha and Mbabane Corporate Place.

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