Legal Aid is facing the prospect of protected strike action after the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) issued a certificate of non-resolution. (Not an image of the actual threatened strike.)
Legal Aid is facing the prospect of protected strike action after the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) issued a certificate of non-resolution and signed off formal picketing rules in an escalating labour dispute involving retirement policies, working conditions and employee recognition.
The dispute between Legal Aid SA and the South African Legal Aid Workers Union (SALAWU) has now moved into a formal labour confrontation phase, with the union legally required to provide at least 48 hours’ notice before any strike action can begin.
The signed picketing rules reveal the potential scale of the action, with planned protest sites including Legal Aid offices across the country, magistrates’ courts, high courts, Parliament in Cape Town and the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development’s head office in Pretoria.
The rules, in IOL’s possession, specifically identify courts and offices in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Polokwane, Cape Town, Kimberley, Mthatha, Mahikeng, George and other centres.
