Strikes

{ 09/09/2010 @ 15:05 } · { Uncategorized }

A few weeks ago all the teachers and nurses belonging to South Africa’s largest union, COSATU, went on strike. They were demanding an 8.1% wage increase, and teachers wanted a R1000 housing allowance.
I firmly, FIRMLY believe that educators and social workers the world over are not paid according to their worth in society.
But these strikers wanted a wage hike more than twice the rate of inflation, and a R1000 housing allowance for living in rural areas where the rent is maybe R350 (including electricity).
Non-striking teachers, doctors, and nurses were forced out of their respective places of employment, sometimes violently.
Here in my village a non-striking principal was continuing to educate learners. I think it was a matric class (think senior year). Striking teachers came into the school and forced him out. He pulled a gun and shot it in the air, and teachers scattered. THIS IS IN MY VILLAGE!!
The head nurse in charge of the clinic across the road where I work continued to dispense medication to the emergency cases (I think this includes ARV’s for the HIV+ and medication for TB+). Strikers came and threatened him, wanting to know why he was still working.
I guess my general feelings on the strike is that yea, you guys deserve to be paid well. And yet…i think teachers need to accept more responsibility. From my experiences in two different schools here, I dont see a lot of…teaching. I see teachers wandering around. I see them grading papers in class, handing out papers and then collecting them again. I feel like teachers want this huge pay increase, but they refuse to accept responsibility for basic things like job performance. Additionally, teachers are already the ones driving new cars, they wear nicer clothes, have satellite dishes, and have big houses. Do they really need to widen the gap between themselves and their neighbors?
The strikes, after 3 weeks, have been put on hold while the unions continue to negotiate. So far the pay raise is at 7.5% (again, twice the rate of inflation). But they may continue in 4-5 weeks. Let’s hope they dont!