Close to 2 000 SACCAWU members at more than forty Dis-Chem Pharmacies nationwide have been on strike since the 27^th of May. For some time now Dis-Chem has consistently demonstrated a hostility towards its employees joining SACCAWU and actively participating in union activities. The media have failed to cover the ongoing action of workers and  SACCAWU have written an open letter to the media. With increased profits of more than 7%, workers are demanding a R3500-00 minimum wage, 15% across the board increase,  conversion of casuals to permanent after three months, a guaranteed 13th cheque, and parental rights, medical aid, transport allowance and improvement of other benefits. See a full briefing on the strike here. 

 

We have note with concern that despite the fact that our members at Dis-Chem have been on strike and the picket-line for more than two weeks, the media has not been covering this industrial action. We have issued numerous press releases and have received no coverage, but for the very rare reporting by a very few radio stations and even less by the print media. This trend is of concern because this is tantamount to silencing the voices of the workers and their struggles. Of particular concern is the failure of SABC, the public broadcaster, to report on our national strike actions, especially when it come to worker issues in general, off course unless there's controversy. This tabloid attittude of when it bleed it lead is disappointing While in the recent past the strikes at Woolworths, Makro, Game, Dion and Sun International were reasonably covered the current round of strikes has yet to make the news or receive the coverage it deserve as matters of public interest; and this is so despite the massive job losses, enterprise re-engineering/restructuring in the sector at the expense of workers while the anti-union train to transform our sector into a Wal-Mart like clone moves on.

 

This blanket silence on workers struggles from the side of the media is of grave concern to us. We cannot help but wonder whether we are experiencing some sort of self-censorship by the main stream media where workers voices are muffled and workers struggles sacrificed at the altar of the World Cup. This is not only unacceptable, but also dangerous, as these same striking workers are called upon by the same media to throw their lot behind the country in making this the greatest FIFA World Cup competition ever, while ignoring these workers struggles.

 

Further, of concern to us is the fact that we will be embarking on a second strike at Game & Dion from tomorrow and we also have obtained a certificate of non-resolution in our dispute with Makro, which might even see a third SACCAWU strike in the near future. A continuation of this trend will be a gross failure of the media in reporting news and matters of public interest. Finally, it also appear that some companies are using the FIFA World Cup competition to ride rough over workers, displaying extreme anti-union attitudes and hoping that they can use the general mood surrounding the World Cup to impose upon workers extremely unfavourable wage increases and terms of conditions of employment and the silence of the media demonstrate in the most unambiguous way the callousness of bosses and the extent to which the media, even if it is unwttingly, serve the interests of their masters.

 

We refuse to accept that workers rights and interests should be sacrificed at the altar of the FIFA World Cup competition and call on the media to do justice to these genuine struggles of the working class and give it the coverage it deserve as items of news and issues of public interests.

 

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Download PDF briefing and background to ongoing Dis-Chem strike. The document details the Workers demands, SACCAWU MEMORANDUM TO DISCHEM PHARMACIES MANAGEMENT, Dis-Chem actions aimed at destroying SACCAWU, The Life of Ethelina a Dis-Chem Employee, and details of harassment by SAPS of striking Dis-Chem workers.