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Mustek strike: CEO David Kan to lead negotiations

Samuel Mungadze
By Samuel Mungadze, Africa editor
Johannesburg, 23 Sept 2020
Mustek CEO David Kan.
Mustek CEO David Kan.

Mustek CEO David Kan will today lead company negotiations with employees that have been on strike for a week.

Communication Workers Union (CWU) general secretary Aubrey Tshabalala, who met with Kan in a closed door meeting yesterday, says “proper negotiations will resume to afford parties an opportunity to resolve matters”.

The CWU has blamed Mustek for the continuing strike, claiming the company was “rushing to courts” instead of engaging with employees for a solution.

The week-long work stoppage has disrupted operations at Mustek, which forced the ICT products supplier to lockup its head office since last Friday. The company has also halted deliveries and collections due to the growing tensions.

However, this morning, Tshabalala indicated a solution is now possible because Kan is directly involved in the negotiations.

He tells ITWeb: “There was a meeting between the general secretary of CWU and the CEO of Mustek; however, the meeting took place while Mustek had already filed papers to approach the Labour Court for the second time in their quest to interdict the strike.”

Tshabalala continues: “The meeting resolved and agreed that proper negotiations must resume to afford parties an opportunity to resolve matters. What led to a dispute and ultimately the CCMA route that produced a certificate to strike was the fact that there were no proper negotiations except the exchange of documents.”

Kan addressed employees yesterday after his meeting with Tshabalala, saying: “I and the general secretary had a meeting for more than an hour; we didn’t not reach any agreement but we agreed to talk. I am not going to give you incorrect information; we will talk.”

Among the demands the union wants Mustek to fulfil is a 30% share in the company’s profit and a 20% salary increase in the coming financial year-end.

The workers are also demanding a R3 000 housing allowance and a provident fund.

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