Tshwane recovering from 4-month-long municipal workers' protest: Brink

JOHANNESBURG - Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink says the capital city is still recovering from the four-month-long protest by municipal workers.

Between June and November last year, hundreds of workers affiliated with to trade union South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) downed tools demanding salary increments.

The unprotected strike, which saw dozens of workers dismissed, severely affected service delivery in the municipality.

Speaking during his State of the City Address on Thursday, Brink admitted that service delivery was not at ideal levels.

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Over 120 municipal workers in Tshwane who participated in SAMWU’s protest were dismissed for supporting an unprotected strike.

The city was quick to admit that the mass dismissal of workers had a negative impact on waste collection, infrastructure maintenance and service delivery as a whole.

Brink assured residents that his administration was making progress in returning the city to its former glory.

"To improve service delivery following the prolonged strike, we introduced the mayoral urban management plan in November 2023. The plan concentrates on proactive maintenance along major routes, public spaces such as parks, key buildings and cemeteries."

He says the city’s goal is to attend to power outages in less than seven hours and water leaks within 48 hours.