SABC News reports that the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU) in the Free State has warned that Mohokare Local Municipality employees will not return to work until their salaries are paid. The municipality reportedly issued a notice stating that salaries are unlikely to be paid to workers in May and June due to financial challenges and constraints.

Shop Steward Mamodula Pieterse elaborates, “There are no guarantees, but the premier has promised and we are still waiting. There are no services being rendered to the community. The offices have been closed for almost 2 weeks now. Salaries, they say, we won’t get for two months – the month of May and June. We will also have to consult the province to see what we can do as SAMWU, but as long as we don’t get paid, we won’t return to work.” Meanwhile, SAMWU raised concerns about several municipalities being unable to pay workers their salaries on time.

SAMWU Deputy General Secretary, Nkhetheni Muthavhi, spoke to SABC News during a podcast on SAfm First Take: