BL Premium reports that public transport company Putco has told the South Gauteng High Court that about 400 jobs at the company are on the line, and nearly 30,000 commuters in Gauteng will be left without transport, should the provincial Department of Transport (DoT) cut back on its service subsidy.

Putco, a subsidiary of the Larimar Group, is subsidised by the DoT so that it can offer lower prices to thousands of commuters from low-income areas. The most recent contract between Putco and the DoT was entered into last year, but thereafter the government had a change of heart and wanted to amend the terms and conditions of the contract. This led to a dispute being declared at the Arbitration Foundation of Southern Africa (Afsa). One of the amendments the DoT wants to make is to reduce the kilometres agreed upon, as a means of reducing the quantum of the monthly subsidies it pays to Putco.

The company approached the court for an interdict stopping the department from amending the contract pending the resolution of the dispute before Afsa. The company argued that it would be short-paid by R20m every month, with about 28,300 passengers cut off from its services daily. The company, which has a fleet of more than 1,000 buses, told the court that the effect of the department’s decision would be having to let 400 workers go and reducing its fleet by 212 buses. On Friday, the court granted the interdict after Putco convinced it that it would suffer irreparable harm should the contract be precipitously amended.

by Kabelo Khumalo
Ref: SA Labour News