South Africa simply cannot afford the disruption of its supply chains and the impasse between workers’ unions and Transnet is devastating the economy already downtrodden by load shedding.
This, says the South African Association of Freight Forwarders (SAAFF), is why it is critical that a resolution on wage negotiations is reached as soon as possible.
In a press release issued by the SAAFF’s CEO, Dr Juanita Maree, she writes that the Covid-19 pandemic has taught South Africans the importance of maintaining supply chains. “SAAFF research shows that logistics delays to the supply chain cost our economy between R100 million and R1 billion per day. However, when calculating the total economic cost, the final consequence of the devastating impact is far higher than that.”
Maree adds that SARS merchandise statistics showed that R343 billion worth of goods were traded by the country in August.
“If we consider that 70% of merchandise is processed via the ocean modality, the current inactivity blocks more than R8 billion worth of goods each day!
“Combined with the ripple effect, the impact is more than the country can absorb, given the current economic climate.”
‘Impact not fully understood’
She says the organisation believes that the decision makers in the negotiations – both Transnet and the labour force – don’t fully understand the economic extent of their strike action and that the unintended consequences of the port strikes will be far worse than the country’s energy crisis if left unattended.
She also warns that a one-day loss in port activity results in a minimum of 10 days of operational recovery, while the ripple effect and economic loss throughout the rest of the economy will likely run into the billions per day.
“If the country and the government do not have money now, they will have much less in seven days. The strike is throttling our economy to the point of no return. We need decisive, urgent action now!” she pleads.
She emphasises that international trade is a critical economic driver “Any failure to facilitate trade has dire consequences for each and every South African. Against the backdrop of low growth, high unemployment, and rising living costs, we are doing an injustice to ordinary South Africans by leaving this catastrophic situation unattended.
“Collectively, SAAFF calls on government and labour to reach a swift resolution to the current impasse, as the time is ripe for decisive leadership on behalf of all constituencies.”
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