South African trade union Solidarity has been given a mandate by senior members to strike at energy giant Sasol over its plan to launch a share-ownership scheme to black staff exclusively, a union source said on Tuesday.
South African government mediators last month cleared the Solidarity union, which represents predominately white workers, to strike over the dispute.
"Our senior representatives gave us the mandate to go on strike today," the source told Reuters. "We will now start the process to do a strike vote with all our members."
Under black economic empowerment rules, South African companies are required to meet quotas on black ownership, employment and procurement — as part of a drive to reverse decades of exclusion under apartheid.
-Reuters