Cresta management and workers strike deal

EPHRAIM KEORENG
Staff Writer | Tuesday November 30, 2010 00:00

 

BHTTWU executive officer, Nicholas Motiki, said they met the management yesterday morning where the latter pleaded that the strike, which is impacting negatively on the company business, come to an end on the promise that negotiations on wage increases will resume in two weeks time.

Relating the turn of events, Motiki said last weekend they received a call from a management official who asked that they meet with management on Monday to find a way of resolving the stay away which was hitting the company hard.

'We met them yesterday and resolved that all the union members partaking in the strike should go back to work.

They wanted the workers to be back by 2pm yesterday. 

But we told them it's impossible, because first the workers will not want to clean up the mess that might have been left at the hotels and lodges during the strike. So they start today.'

He revealed that, 'yesterday and today, we agreed that management be allowed to engage temporary resources, specifically casual labourers and outsourced companies'.

Motiki added that they agreed that in two weeks' time, they will meet to break the current impasse.  Most importantly, Motiki revealed, management made an undertaking that it will not intimidate employees who took part in the strike.

'This is a great achievement in the sense that now management takes seriously our grievance and has decided to sit down and talk with us about it to find a solution. 

'However, we want to assure our members that the agreement to stop the strike and go back to the negotiation table does not mean we have abandoned our demand for 13 percent increment.

We still do and that is what we will come before the negotiation table with,' he said. Efforts to seek comment from the Cresta Management were futile as their phone ran unanswered.