The first day of strike action by SAMWU members has resulted in minimal disruptions to services.
A total of 1400 employees were absent constituting 6.7% of the workforce.
A total of 1118 essential service employees did not report for work – the majority of these employees are from the Durban Solid Waste (DSW) Unit.
The main disruption was to refuse collection services and problematic areas were Springfield, Pinetown, Shallcross and Tongaat.
The Municipality is constantly monitoring the situation and will keep the public informed.
eThekwini Mayor, Cllr James Nxumalo, issued the following apology to residents; “I wish to apologise to eThekwini residents for the likely impact of the Municipal workers’ strike on service delivery and urge all residents to remain calm and patient.
“The Municipality has put in place contingency plans to ensure there is minimal disruption to services. We will engage with labour to ensure that the dispute is resolved as soon as possible. Residents will be regularly updated of the situation through the media. We also call on all Municipal workers partaking in the strike to conduct themselves in an orderly, non-violent manner.”
