Pretoria - A group of workers at Checkers supermarket in Pretoria North are facing suspension after they accused their branch manager of calling them “baboons and stupid blacks”.
Racial tension reached boiling point yesterday, when the company called in private security guards to prevent workers from entering the store.
Workers said the protest against racism started on Saturday, when the EFF was asked to intervene on their behalf.
They said they tried to seek help from the South African Commercial, Catering and Allied Workers Union (Saccawu). Some workers accused the union of siding with the management. They said their shop steward had deserted them and was among their colleagues who continued to work.
On Saturday, the EFF stormed into the store and threatened to close it after a heated argument with the management.
When Pretoria News visited the store on the corner of Emily Hobhouse and Gerrit Maritz streets yesterday, there were armed security personnel at the entrance. Others, accompanied by vicious dogs, were keeping an eye on activities behind the store.
The manager, Christo Visagie, refused to speak to the media. He said he was not authorised to do so. Several attempts to get comments from the company proved fruitless.
Workers, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, accused Visagie of discriminating against them by referring to them as “baboons, stubborn, spoilt and stupid”.
One employee said: “Sometimes, he denies people not to go to lunch or to the loo. We once took the matter up with the company’s regional office, and they called him to order, but he didn’t stop with his rude behaviour.”
Employees said that on numerous occasions they tried to tell Visagie that they were unhappy with how he treated them, but he refused to change.
They said the management chased them out of the shop on Saturday when the EFF arrived.
An employee said: “We went outside and started chanting slogans with other EFF members. Maybe that is why we are facing suspension.”
Others said the management told them on Saturday to come to work on Monday at 8am. However, when they pitched for work yesterday, they were presented with suspension letters. The workers said they refused to sign them.
They said more than 100 workers were affected, and were called individually to sign the letters.
The workers asked the management for reasons for the suspension, and were told they would find out at the hearing.
They said all they wanted was for Visagie to desist from calling them baboons “because we want to work in peace. We are not baboons, we are people”.
Regional secretary of Saccawu, Cyril Dibakwane, denied claims that the union was failing to stand for the workers’ rights. He said they had not raised racism claims with the union before.
“The union was unaware of the claims. It is for the first time we are told about them. We are waiting for workers to understand what the issues are so we can make the necessary interventions, including the question of suspension,” he said.
Pretoria News