Numsa strike at Ford SA to continue

The National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) strike at Ford SA is set to continue after the labour court reserved judgment on an application by the car manufacturer to interdict the industrial action, which began on Thursday. 

This means the strike — which could affect production and Ford suppliers, and throw supply chain processes into disarray — continues indefinitely. 

Numsa, the country’s largest trade union with more than 450,000 members, is the only union at Ford SA, according to treasurer Mphumzi Maqungo. The company had a staff complement of 3,500, he said, adding that Numsa represented 3,000 workers. 

Ford SA corporate communications manager Duduzile Nxele said the company would not be “commenting further at this point”. 

Nxele told Business Day on Tuesday that production disruptions “have a profound impact on SA’s economy and global reputation as a place to do business. “When making decisions about future investment, consistency of production is vital to maintaining competitiveness and an important factor when determining manufacturing locations.”

Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim has said the reason for the strike was Ford’s refusal to share its profits with workers. 

The automotive sector is one of the country’s largest, contributing 4.3% to GDP and is also the country’s fifth-largest export sector, accounting for 18.1% of total exports. It employs more than 110,000 people.

Jim has said Ford SA could afford to pay workers “some kind of bonus” as the company had “made a fortune” over the past four years. “According to Macrotrends ... their gross profit for the 12 months ending March 31 2024 was $25.137bn.”

However, the Macrotrends website shows that figure was for the whole of Ford Motor Company.

In November 2023, Ford SA said it was spending R5.2bn to turn its SA subsidiary into the only global manufacturer of plug-in, hybrid-electric Ranger bakkies. 

Business Day reported that by the time the investment was completed late in 2024, Ford would have spent R35bn on its SA operations since 2011, when the Silverton vehicle assembly plant in Tshwane switched exclusively to Ranger production. 

SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said the labour federation supported the Numsa strike. 

“Given the profit growth the company has been able to score in the past several years, Saftu argues that Ford can afford the annual bonuses, not just incentive bonuses. 

“Furthermore, bonuses, like basic remuneration and profit, come from the surplus value that is created by workers in production. Primarily due to this, they are entitled to better remuneration, including bonuses, because they alone create the surplus value. Such surpluses should not only contribute to the wealth growth of shareholders but must benefit the workers who create it,” said Vavi. 

He took issue that company executives were guaranteed annual bonuses while workers were offered “incentive bonuses that are based on how well workers slave themselves to meet company targets”. 

mkentanel@businesslive.co.za