The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (NUMSA) has expressed its unhappiness with employers in the engineering sector, saying “drastic reform and transformation” is needed.

NUMSA presented employers belonging to the Metal and Engineering Bargaining Council (MEIBC) with a list of demands on Thursday, after stating that the industry was racist.

In a statement released by NUMSA, the union said “employers operate from the premise that workers deserve to be exploited and that is why they are driving the implementation of such backward labour policies”.

“Our members are suffering in the engineering sector,” the union added.

NUMSA said employers responded to their previous demands, however the union felt that their proposals will result in a down variation of the working conditions which are currently in place.

The union said it seemed as though employers had “deliberately chosen to propose policies designed to erode all the benefits which workers fought so hard for”.

“It appears that they are attempting to provoke a deadlock so that strike action is inevitable,” the union added.

NUMSA said their intentions were to negotiate a wage agreement that will benefit its members and their families. “We are willing to engage constructively,” NUMSA said. However the union maintained a strong stance and said it “will not be coerced into accepting deals which will increase the suffering of [its] members”.

NUMSA met with employers yesterday to discuss its demands, which are as follows:

• A 15% wage increase across the board based on the actual rate that workers are earning, and not on the minimum rate
• An extension of the current agreement for two years and the finalisation of the outstanding issues
• An extension of the agreement to non-parties such as NEASA and PCASA who fall under the MEIBC

According to NUMSA, below are some of the proposals that employers gave the union:

• Currently employees work 40 hours, anything over that is overtime. The employers want to change this by introducing a minimum 45 hour week
• Employers want to reduce leave time for new employees. Those who have worked 4 years or more, you are entitled to 4weeks leave. Employers want to change this – new entrants will not qualify for four weeks leave after four years of service
• If workers do not work all their shifts, they will only qualify for a prorata bonus and will not receive a 13^th This policy could impact women on maternity leave, and has a detrimental impact on workers who take sick leave or workers who are on an authorised leave.
• Employers want new employees joining the company to earn less than 60% of the current rate, not the actual minimum rate.