Most Transnet workers arrived for work at the country’s ports which were operational as usual, although many transporters stopped freight movement on the roads in KwaZulu Natal on Monday during the planned national shutdown.
Dave Watts, an independent consultant to the maritime industry, told Freight News that reports from the industry across ports in KZN and the Eastern Cape, with the exception of Richards Bay, indicated that there had been between 95% and 100% Transnet staff attendance at work, despite the call by the Economic Freedom Fighters to stay away. The EFF had called for the national shutdown in protest against loadshedding and to call for the removal of President Cyril Ramaphosa. Ironically, Eskom reduced loadshedding to stage one and two at the weekend when the grid stabilised after the parastatal managed to improve generation capacity on Friday, and suspended it at 11:00 on Monday until 16:00 on Tuesday due to anticipated reduced demand.
“On the marine side there has been between 95% and 100% turn-out at all terminals and a little bit of a struggle with staff attendance at Richards Bay but they are hoping it will improve. The impact on the landside is that the trucks are not moving in any numbers today so there is very little road transport in Durban,” Watts said.
This comes after most truckers heeded Road Freight Association, CEO Gavin Kelly’s, call for transporters to put safety first and to be cautious about moving cargo on the roads during the shutdown and to consider delaying transportation until Tuesday.
Durban Harbour Carriers Chairperson Sue Moodley said it was “good to note that staff have understood the importance of going to work today, and keeping our economy going”.
SA Association of Freight Forwarders director of maritime, Mike Walwyn, said reports he had received from the industry indicated that there was no problem with cargo movement and that activity at Cape Town Port terminals was “fairly normal”. He said a convoy of EFF buses had been seen heading towards the city earlier in the day.
“The port WhatsApp groups are reflecting fairly normal activity and cargo is definitely moving,” Walwyn said.
Transnet had not responded to questions about staff attendance and port operations at the time of publication.
