Nedlac approves Solidarity strike action over ‘race exclusion’

30th October 2018 By: Tasneem Bulbulia - Senior Contributing Editor Online

Trade union Solidarity on Tuesday said the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) had approved its application to undertake a lawful strike against the exclusion of white employees from employee share ownership plans.

In terms of the Nedlac decision, all of Solidarity’s 180 000 members can now embark on legal strike action in solidarity with those members who are employees of Sasol and that have been excluded from participating in the second phase of Sasol’s Khanyisa broad-based black economic empowerment ownership scheme, based on their race.

Solidarity filed the application on July 25, and proceeded to the High Court after Nedlac initially denied the application.

Meanwhile, Solidarity has also embarked on a legal process to ask the Labour Court to give a ruling on whether Sasol’s exclusion of white employees is lawful.

“Following the Nedlac decision, we will now revert to our members about a possible strike mandate. A possibility is to let it coincide with the court case. However, we will let our members guide us in this decision,” indicated Solidarity CE Dirk Hermann.