Pretoria - The National Transport Movement (NTM) does not have the requisite number of members it needs to gain official recognition as a labour representative at South African Airways (SAA), says the airline.
This follows a report released by the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA), which indicates that the NTM does not have the numbers required to gain recognition.
The union, which wants recognition by the airline, went on strike last month.
The verification process was an attempt between SAA and NTM to resolve the impasse around the recognition of the union.
Earlier this month, the union and SAA signed an agreement on the terms of reference for the verification process.
The intent of the signed agreement was to concur on the process that would determine whether the union has sufficient members in order to be recognised.
“The report received from the CCMA declares that NTM has not met the required threshold of 30% of the employees within the bargaining unit.
“In this regard, and in accordance with the terms of reference, the strike must cease,” SAA spokesperson Tlali Tlali said on Thursday.
The report does not come as a surprise to the national carrier.
“However, we have taken note that the report has indicated that NTM is not too far from reaching the requisite numbers to enable them to be recognised.
“Partial recognition was never an option and for that reason, we would like to restate a view we expressed before: NTM must satisfy all requirements, including securing the required numbers, so that they can enjoy full and proper recognition,” said Tlali. – SAnews.gov.za
