Strike harms local business

LEPHALALE – While the national electricity grid is under severe pressure, local businesses are also struggling to survive due to the continued strike at the Medupi power station site.
Nguni Grill restaurant owner, Ettiene Victor, says that he has seen a drop in customers frequenting his restaurant:
“Many of my regular clients have been transferred or moved because of the strike,” he says.
He adds that some of his clients are scared to go out at night. “I find that there are clients who feel unsafe because of the uncertainty of the strike and they prefer to stay at home.”
Annemarie Maloney manager of Lephalale Square, says business is down because of the strike, but warns that businesses should get used to having less clients: “When Medupi's construction is complete, there will be far less people in this town,” she says, “we should keep in mind that the last few years' growth rate is not sustainable.”
Medupi’s workforce has already shrunk from 21 000 to 14 000 since 2013.
Many of the demobilised employees are still living in the hostels and they are now demanding that they should be absorbed into companies and foreigners should be removed. These demobilised workers are apparently blamed for causing the strike.
Pierre Malherbe, owner of One Stop, says he lost about 50% of his sales as the strike continues. “I cater for guest houses and restaurants who are severely affected by the strike.”
“In retail we rely on the amount of people who are interested in buying our products and when there are no buyers we have no business.”
Malherbe adds that it is difficult to determine how much stock is needed due to the uncertainty that is essentially part of the strike. “At this stage, I am not sure whether I should stock up on certain items or not.”
Eskom’s spokesperson, Khulu Phasiwe, told the media that there are many foreigners who are working on the Medupi site who are primarily responsible for specialised jobs that can’t be done by local tradesmen. These workers have been providing the town with a steady cash flow for local goods.
Meanwhile Numsa chairperson, Andrew Chirwa, stated on Monday that the eviction order for striking workers and demobilised workers was not granted and that they will continue to fight it in court.