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South Africa faces strike chaos Thousands strike in South Africa
(about 1 hour later)
South Africa is bracing itself for a week in which bus, train and municipal workers are all set to go on strike. Thousands of workers in South Africa have gone on strike, with unions saying most public services are disrupted.
The industrial action will see more than 160,000 people stop work in support of claims for higher wages. About 150,000 refuse collectors, city police and public-transport workers, among others, have stopped work in a campaign for higher wages, unions said.
This is the latest in a series of challenges for South Africa's new President Jacob Zuma, who has called for understanding from workers. Last week there were violent protests over the lack of housing, water and electricity in the poorest townships.
There were violent demonstrations in several townships last week, during which some 200 people were arrested. Analysts say the strikes and unrest are the first major challenges for new President Jacob Zuma.
It is proving to be a cold and difficult winter for Jacob Zuma. He has called for understanding from workers, but the BBC's Jonah Fisher in Johannesburg says crowd-pleasing promises he made during his election campaign are proving hard to keep.
Just two months after taking power, he is facing South Africa's first recession since the end of apartheid. Our correspondent says a pledge to create 500,000 new jobs has already been retracted.
Crowd-pleasing promises are proving hard to keep. Dale Forbes, from the South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu), said most members had gone on strike from 0700 (0500 GMT).
An early pledge to create 500,000 new jobs has already been retracted and demonstrations in the townships turned violent this month over long-held grievances about the delivery of services and housing. He said he was confident the public was backing the strike.
As if that wasn't enough, this is strike season. "They want to see dramatic improvements in service delivery - which must start with improvements in the conditions of the workers," he said.
On Monday, 150,000 municipal employees responsible for, among other things, rubbish collection and the city police will refuse to work after being denied a 15% wage increase. Members of Samwu and other unions walked out after being denied a 15% wage increase. They rejected an offer of 11.5%.
A separate strike by transport workers will see most train and bus services grind to a halt. The country has already faced a major strike by construction workers, which threatened stadiums being built for next year's football World Cup.
Several other unions say they are considering their options. That strike was ended earlier this month after workers and employers agreed a 12% pay rise.