attention
3 August 2006
Mafikeng: The North West Department of Health can confirm that a speedy
resolution is being sought on the matter of unrest and problems at Rustenburg
Provincial Hospital. The department has learnt with regret that over the past
few days, management of Rustenburg Hospital was held hostage by Congress of
South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) affiliates National, Education, Health and
Allied Workers Union (NEHAWU) and the Democratic Nurses Organisation of South
Africa (Denosa). The unions were alleging that the department had taken
disciplinary actions against workers who were demonstrating on 20 June 2006,
and further demanded that the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the hospital be
suspended with immediate effect.
An agreement was signed between the department and labour around these two
conditions. The agreement was that the department will after having certified
allegations made by the unions take a decision on whether or not to proceed
with the disciplinary processes. We further agreed that that the CEO will be
given a leave of absence like any other person who qualifies for leave within
the confines of public service administration procedures. We therefore want to
refute allegations that the CEO has been suspended.
The department has subsequent to this hostage drama sent a team of senior
managers led by the Chief Director: Corporate Services to the hospital to
establish facts around Cosatu allegations as referred to above. The department
has further organised bilateral meetings with labour scheduled for Thursday, 2
August and Monday, 7 August 2006 respectively.
Regardless of the status quo, the department can confirm that health care
service delivery continues to function as normal. The department can further
confirm that employees who were demonstrating were served with an interdict
owing to the sensitivity of the hospital environment. As the department, we
felt the demonstrations within the hospital were disturbing patients and that
the same people who were demonstrating were supposed to be providing care to
the patients We felt these demonstrations were traumatising the very patients
which the unions were claiming to be speaking on behalf of.
We are still committed to the agreement reached between the department and
labour. However we have learned with shock that the very unions who are party
to the agreement have disrupted two meetings of the departmental task team
established by the head of department in the hospital. We want to reiterate
that we do not need union permission to establish any form of a task team,
investigating teams or delegations to our institutions. We will continue to
condemn any action by the unions that disturb rendering of health care services
to our people.
Media enquiries:
Mr Isaac Mokaila
Tel: (018) 387 5813
Cell: 073 742 3906
Zakes Molala
Acting departmental spokesperson
Tel: (018) 387 5830
Fax (018) 387 5830
E-mail: lmolala@nwpg.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Health, North West Provincial Government
3 August 2006
Source: North West Provincial Government (http://www.nwpg.gov.za/)
