UNESWA MANAGEMENT CALLS STRIKING EMPLOYEES FOR TALKS

MANZINI - Following the legal strike by the University of Eswatini (UNESWA) employees on award performances (notching), management has shown interest in engaging in talks with its employees.

The employees, who are members of the Association of Lecturers, Academic and Administrative Personnel (ALAAP) are currently on a non-stop (waya-waya) strike over notching. The strike began last Wednesday whereupon employees from the Kwaluseni, Mbabane and Luyengo campuses downed tools and convened at the Kwaluseni Campus to demonstrate. For the past couple of days, the workers were seen parking their cars outside the Kwaluseni Campus and sitting under trees, while others were doing the vusela exercise around the university premises. They were singing and dancing to political songs and lectures were not conducted.

In this period, the university had been quiet, save for stating that there was no money for notching. On Thursday, the university was quoted as having clarified that there was still no money for what the employees were asking. It was mentioned that there was an impression that a majority of the employees were not up to date with the laws that they had signed, that there was no notching. The university said it was agreed upon that there would be a performance management system instead. However, fast forward to the past weekend, this publication was informed that the university reportedly showed an interest by approaching its workers to broker a way forward and bring the strike to an end.

Confirmed

This was confirmed by UNESWA Registrar Dr Salebona Simelane, who said the management team met with a view to broker a way forward on the impasse at the bequest of the management team. “We are grateful to the ALAAP team for accepting and honouring the invitation. The management team will report the outcome of the meeting to the university council in due course,” Dr Simelane said. The registrar stated that the date of the meeting had not been set yet. He further said unfortunately, there was nothing he could disclose at present.
Meanwhile, ALAAP General Secretary Dr Mduduzi Shongwe also established that they were called to a meeting to broker a way forward pertaining to their issue. Dr Shongwe said they (management) was willing to talk about the issue and would go and report their demand to the council. Nonetheless, the general secretary maintained that they would continue with the strike until their demand was met.

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