JOHANNESBURG – The South African Police Service management has begun laying disciplinary charges against striking 10111 crime call centre staffers who failed to return to work as instructed, a police spokesman said on Tuesday.

Police spokesperson Brigadier Vishnu Naidoo said the South African Police Union was aware of a binding signed agreement and that they could no longer claim that this was a protected strike.

“While the majority of these employees have returned to work, some have not and the necessary disciplinary action is being instituted against those members that have chosen not to return,” Naidoo said.

Members of Sapu stood their ground last week when police management instructed them to return to work by Friday or face disciplinary charges because the strike was unprotected.

This followed the agreement that SAPS said it had signed with majority union Popcru (Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union) at the industry’s Safety and Security Sectoral Bargaining Council (SSSBC) in August.

READ: Sapu: 10111 work ‘dangerous’

Sapu said it would not sign the agreement as it did not address their demands. It further threatened to take the SAPS to court.

The union said this week that it would intensify its strike and march to the seat of government, the Union Buildings in Pretoria on October 16.

The crime call centre workers first downed tools in July after wage negotiations deadlocked.

The strike was temporarily suspended a few days later as negotiations resumed at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.

The union then resumed the strike after accusing rival union Popcru of stalling the CCMA talks.

The workers have demanded salary upgrades to be at the same level as other call centre workers at the department of home affairs, South African Social Security Agency, South African Revenue Services and the presidential hotline, among others.

The salary upgrades were recommended in 2013 by a task team set up by former police commissioner Riah Phiyega.

African News Agency