POPCRU has never been a ‘sweetheart’ union
3 October 2017
The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) notes the devious and sensational claims made by both SAFTU’s Zwelinzima Vavi and SAPU at their press conference yesterday, alleging that we are a “sweetheart” union that is deviant from the interests of workers within the criminal justice cluster, and in particular 10111 call centre operators.
These malicious claims are clearly aimed at misleading the public and setting off these workers against us, but most extensively, to blindly lead these workers into believing SAPU is their only hope in resolving the concerns raised.
In setting the record straight, since 2007, it has only been POPCRU’s call from its 7thNational Congress resolutions the demand and mandate that the Public Service Act employees within the South African Police Service (SAPS) must be incorporated into the Police Act. This was against the backdrop that Public Service Act appointees within the SAPS earned peanuts, and there was lack of upward mobility therein.
The signing of the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) resolution 3 of 2009, whose aim was to improve working conditions for Public Service Act appointees within the SAPS did not change much. The negotiations in the Safety and Security Sectoral Bargaining Council (SSSBC) in 2010 and 2011 finally gave effect to the demand and mandate of POPCRU in translating the Public Service Act appointees within the SAPS into the Police Act.
This is stipulated in the SSSBC Resolution 2 of 2011, Part D, clauses 5.1 and 5.2 respectively, to which SAPU is a signatory.
The failure to implement this clause led to POPCRU leading a national march in 2013 wherein we demanded the upgrading of salaries and the incorporation of Public Service Act appointees into the Police Act among others.
This action forced SAPS to upgrade salaries of clerks within the SAPS, including 10111 call centre operators in the 2015/2016 financial year amongst other categories. We continued to pursue the upgrading of outstanding categories such as groundsmen, security personnel, cleaners and many others to a point where we both unions declared a dispute in the SSSBC.
It is therefore hypocritical of SAPU to go out and claim we are a ‘sweetheart’ union when it was us who fought for the upliftment of working conditions of all members; a commitment we remain loyal to.
Unfortunately for its members, since being affiliated to SAFTU, SAPU has degenerated to an extent that it is now a mere pawn preoccupied with Vavi’s long-standing fight against POPCRU.
Evident to this was their impulsive decision to move out of the SSSBC negotiations on matters which are the jurisdiction of the SSSBC by taking them to the CCMA. Unfortunately, to their demise, the CCMA returned the matter back to the SSSBC for negotiations through a settlement agreement to which SAPU is a signatory. The negotiations emanating from the implementation of the settlement agreement from the CCMA gave birth to the current agreement they are now questioning.
To add salt to the wound, they returned to negotiations as per the settlement agreement and later arbitrarily withdrew from negotiations, led members back to the strike which they had suspended through signing the settlement agreement. Subsequent to this, they voluntarily returned back to negotiations and left members in a strike. This has shown a total lack of leadership from within SAPU.
As things stand, those striking members are without salaries, and some are facing disciplinary action. It is unfortunate that SAFTU and SAPU’s renewed call to strike will exacerbate the situation for the striking members.
We call upon our members to resist falling prey to egocentric calls which are not in the interest of members.
Issued by Richard Mamabolo, Communications Officer, POPCRU, 3 October 2017
