DA: Public will pay for strike

2010-09-03 19:17

Cape Town - Ordinary South Africans, not the government, will ultimately pay for the ongoing public service strike, the Democratic Alliance said on Friday.

As the strike continued without an end in sight, it was time for the government to take stock of the real costs, both in terms of immediate impact and the wider implications, because South Africa was now at a crossroads for the country's future, DA chief whip Ian Davidson said.

"For there is really only one victim here - the people of South Africa who, in a variety of ways that shall be felt over the immediate and long-term, are ultimately going to pay and suffer because of the refusal of the unions to negotiate and the inability of the government to competently manage labour relations in this country," he said.

The salient question was simply: where would the government get the money for whatever settlement was reached, Davidson said.

The fiscus was already strained and government reserves were empty, the budget overextended.

"It shall have to be sourced elsewhere, which means, inevitably, sourcing money from other budget allocations that actually endeavour to provide South Africans with the most basic prerequisites that each citizen is not only entitled to, but deserves," Davidson said.

Higher wage bill will hurt depts

Many departments and programmes would undoubtedly be hard-hit, including education and health.

"Indeed, the very ability of those departments to employ further people shall be hampered," he said.

A higher wage bill meant departments had reduced ability to employ more people and might even be forced to retrench people to pay higher salaries.

"Thus, the strike offers only questionable protection to those already employed and nothing for those who are not."

The effort to improve life for all South Africans, especially the poor, would be compromised for a generation and structural inequality would be entrenched.

Financially viable economy

There was also a second, wider implication, relating to the first in a complicated but important way.

That was the maintenance of the South African economy and ensuring it remained financially viable.

"For, if we cannot ensure that the long-term essentials of our economy are sound, how can we ever expect to be able to increase job-creation and allow for the expansion of economic opportunities to all South Africans?" Davidson asked.

Global investors had watched the strike with concern. Not only were labour costs accelerating, the government had also broadcast that it could not negotiate with the labour market or indeed control it in any way, Davidson said.

- SAPA