South Africa's Largest Carrier, Unions Settle Their Dispute Over Salaries - Mediator

The dispute between South African Airlines (SAA) and its employees, whose strike over pay and cuts halted all of the carrier's flights for over a week, has now been settled, the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration said in a statement on Friday

MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd November, 2019) The dispute between South African Airlines (SAA) and its employees, whose strike over pay and cuts halted all of the carrier's flights for over a week, has now been settled, the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration said in a statement on Friday.

Last Friday, SAA workers went on strike over the carrier's intent to cut over 900 jobs amid corporate restructuring. The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) and the South African Airways Cabin Crew Association (SACCA) unions, representing the workers, demanded the resignation of the entire SAA management due to "corruption and failure to perform their responsibilities." All domestic, regional and international SAA flights were subsequently canceled.

"The CCMA is pleased to announce that the wage dispute between South African Airways and the unions SACCA and NUMSA, has been resolved. The mediated process that was re-convened on Wednesday, 20 November 2019, resulted in an agreement being signed at midday today, 22 November 2019," the statement read.

The mediator added that it would ensure post-dispute support to the parties in assisting them with "some of the identified underlying issues and challenges."

The carrier, in the meantime, confirmed reaching an agreement with the unions to end the strike, with one of the conditions being a 5.9 percent salary raise.

"The parties agree to an increase of 5.9% on the total cost of employment retrospective to 1 April 2019, which will be paid in the February 2020 payroll, subject to availability of funding," the SAA said in its summary of the agreement's salient points.

Shortly after, the carrier announced that all flights will resume "near normal operation" on Saturday and at full operation on Sunday.