Africa-Press – South-Africa. Chair of the Nehawu parliament branch highlights Xolile George’s pro-worker and anti-corruption track record, alluding to backlash from the establishment
Parliament’s powerful workers union Nehawu has come out batting for secretary to parliament Xolile George, who it claims is facing imminent suspension.
In what appeared to be a pre-emptive strike on Monday, the union representing more than 80% of parliament’s staff, said it had come across credible information of plans to suspend George before the May 29 general elections.But it has vowed that it will not accept his suspension should it happen. Chair of the Nehawu parliament branch, Sthembiso Tembe, described George as the best secretary to parliament in a long while.
“In terms of his performance, we believe we have got the best secretary in parliament,” he told journalists on Monday.
“There has been stability in parliament, there has been peace, and everyone can see that. But anyone that tampers with the establishment, the current environment, will create problems not only for parliament but for the sector as a whole because of the work that George is doing.”
Tembe said it was not clear why anyone would want to suspend or remove George from parliament.He has not only attended to parliament workers’ interests, but has made positive contributions to the entire legislative sector, he said.
“As you will recall we’re now negotiating as a legislative sector in the national bargaining forum, and since he came, he has tried to move that sector in a positive direction,” said Tembe.
“For instance, for the first time, we have negotiated and settled a three-year multi-term agreement, and it’s important because it stabilises the sector because this thing of negotiating salaries every now and then sometimes raises emotions and destabilises institutions.”
In parliament, George is tackling policies that are not worker-friendly and are not promoting the best interests of workers in terms of benefits and conditions of service, and is doing so with input from the workers themselves, he said.
He is also ensuring that parliament’s protection services officers and the ‘so-called bouncers’ who were recruited from the SAPS in 2015 receive equal pay, holds regular meetings with staff to listen to employees’ problems and is addressing the issue of performance bonuses and notch adjustments, he said.
These are some of the examples Tembe cited as evidence that George was working towards improving employees’ interests.“We are satisfied with his performance this far. As workers we are happy about his performance, fully.
“He has assisted, and that’s what we were looking for. We were looking for a leader that is going to lead the sector in the right direction.”
With regards to the controversial hiking of George’s salary, which was advertised at R2.6m, a figure parliament repeatedly insisted was his salary, Nehawu believes parliament’s presiding officers, acting National Assembly speaker Lechesa Tsenoli and the chair of the National Council of Province should be the ones taken to task about the matter.
Tembe, who represented Nehawu in the panel that interviewed George for the position, confirmed his salary at Salga, which was more than double what parliament was offering, came up during the interview.
George’s response was that the most important thing for him was “to serve his national parliament” but added if he becomes a successful candidate, and there is a need to negotiate his salary and benefits, he would engage with HR.
“That was there, that was open, he clarified it with the panel. We don’t know in full the details of the process that followed.”Tembe said they (Nehawu) later learnt from George that he was not the first secretary to parliament whose salary was reviewed by labour specialists (a private company).
“Also in terms of his recruitment, we are told he was located through the executive search, which means when you’re recruited to the executive search, you recruit people that are already employed, not people without jobs.
“You recruit them to come to join your institution, which means you headhunt, and obviously our understanding of head hunting is that there will be processes that will be triggered by the same headhunt in terms of benefits and so on.”
He said the executive authority should provide full details of this and the process that was followed.“Clearly George would not have left his job where he was earning above R5m without certain agreements being reached that he won’t be underpaid. He was already one of the top earners in the country.”
Tembe said they were not “captured” but understood there are forces in parliament, especially after George suspended senior officials, who were implicated in the fire incident and HR maladministration.
He also claimed there has been unhappiness over George canning the idea of a temporary modular structure that would have accommodated MPs while parliament buildings were being constructed.
The structure would have cost the taxpayer R600m.
“He stopped that process and said instead the energy should be focused on building parliament. As workers we are happy he stopped the corruption that was going to happen in the building of the modular structure.
“We heard that when he is suspended, they will then appoint one of the (officials) and that person will then be entrusted with the responsibility to relook at the modular structure.
“It means they will revert to that part of issue that he stopped and build that modular structure.”
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