Employees at Macsteel are expected back at work on Friday after the steel merchandiser and distributor successfully applied for a court order to interdict strike action by the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) that was expected to get under way from Thursday.
Macsteel CEO Mike Benfield welcomed the ruling and denied that changes had been made to workers’ conditions of employment. “Macsteel welcomes the labour court of SA’s decision to interdict Numsa’s intended protest action as unprotected and unlawful. Numsa are interdicted and restrained from engaging in unprotected and unlawful industrial action including instigating, inciting, intimidation or harassment and interfering or blocking entry and exit of employees, customers and service providers at the business of Macsteel,” he said.
He said Numsa was required to show cause by February 24 2023 why the order should not be made. “A unilateral change to terms and conditions of employment has not occurred in respect of medical aid contributions and the group personal accident benefit cover as alleged by Numsa. All employees will return to their work shifts on October 14,” Benfield said.
Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim had said Macsteel used to contribute 50% towards employees’ medical aid, but this benefit was allegedly unilaterally withdrawn by the company. He accused Macsteel of also withdrawing the accidental death benefit for employees who were retrenched by Macsteel but subsequently absorbed through the company’s placement processes.
“Our members have been provoked into striking because management unilaterally withdrew [these] benefits without consulting the union. Macsteel withdrew the benefits two years ago and Numsa has been engaging with management in an attempt to resolve the dispute, but they have stubbornly refused to listen,” Jim said this week.
Benfield dismissed the claims as “unfounded”, saying the company had requested Numsa to “withdraw these allegations immediately”.
Macsteel, which has more than 40 service centres, branches and warehouses in the country, has dismissed Numsa’s claims as unfounded and an attempt to create conflict. While the company doesn’t have offices outside the country, Macsteel is a pre-eminent supplier of steel into the African continent, which it facilitates through its Macsteel exports division.
The value of its export markets, which include Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe, is R1bn.
Macsteel employs 2,624 staff in SA and a further 250 staff in neighbouring countries. Of the 2,624 staff in the country, 1,314 are unionised, with the majority (1,286) being Numsa members.
Macsteel’s balance sheet and operations were affected by the Covid-19 lockdown, which saw it operating at reduced capacity during the height of the pandemic. The declining steel prices, as a result of an increase in cheap imported steel, have also dealt a blow to a sector that is responsible for about 190,000 direct jobs in SA.
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