The United National Transport Union (Untu), the largest union at the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (Prasa), said it would approach the labour court on an urgent basis for an order interdicting the retrenchment process at the rail operator affecting more than 600 workers.Untu and rival South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (Satawu) were due to hold a meeting with Prasa group CEO Hishaam Emeran on Friday in an effort aimed at finding a solution to looming job cuts, but the meeting was “cancelled”. “Untu is of the view that the consultation process facilitated through the CCMA (Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration) was neither meaningful nor transparent, as the necessary information required for labour to engage effectively was not provided,” spokesperson Atenkosi Plaatjie said.“Access to this information would have assisted labour in exploring alternatives aimed at averting job losses within the entity. Untu received correspondence from Prasa’s attorneys stating the meeting with organised labour has been cancelled, as discussions surrounding the Section 189A retrenchment process now form part of an urgent labour court application set down for May 29 2026.”She said Untu understood the “severe emotional, mental and financial impact this process has had on affected employees and their families. It is therefore our view that pursuing legal intervention remains the most appropriate course of action in defence of our members’ livelihoods.” “At a time when South Africa continues to face a deepening unemployment crisis, with approximately 345,000 jobs lost nationally, it is critical that trade unions utilise every lawful avenue available to protect workers from further economic hardship.” Business Day reported recently that labour had rejected moves by Prasa to have the affected employees sign documents issued in relation to the retrenchment process.Prasa spokesperson Andiswa Makanda and Satawu spokesperson Amanda Tshemese have not yet responded to requests for comment.Prasa, which has a network of more than 2,000km of track, has historically been plagued by ageing infrastructure, vandalism, unreliability and ineffectiveness, fraud, corruption and safety concerns. The entity launched its general overhaul programme in 2022 at a cost of R7.5bn (of which R3.48bn had been spent by the end of March 2025). The overhaul was established to refurbish and extend the service life of Prasa’s legacy rolling stock fleet — the older Metrorail coaches and mainline passenger services locomotives that serve millions of commuters in South Africa’s metropolitan regions.