Trainers warn political party to stay out of wage disputes after strike violence

Johannesburg trainers have chosen to take on the might of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) political party and have issued a warning to its leaders to stay out of future wage negotiations.

The trainers believe it was the EFF that was largely responsible for the violence of last month’s strike and subsequent wage negotiations that left the likes of Mike de Kock, who in his words was “confronted by 300 weapon-wielding, threatening grooms”, so shaken that he intimated he was considering leaving South Africa.

Geoff Woodruff, five-time champion trainer and a leading point-to-point rider in the south of England in his younger days, said in a statement issued on behalf of his fellow trainers: “We have negotiated in good faith with our grooms and reached a settlement. We have told the EFF that they are a political party and have no business meddling in a labour dispute and that we will not speak with them further.

“They constantly harass grooms, trainers and assistant trainers, and threaten violence towards anyone who tries to go about their daily work. The grooms feel very intimidated and fear for their safety and have been given no choice but to participate in the illegal strikes. We feel it’s time now to bring this kind of behaviour to an end.”

It’s a brave move on Woodruff’s part but the obvious danger is that the warning will be treated like a red rag to a bull by the EFF, a self-styled radical and militant party which has huge support among the lower paid and unemployed. At the last general election it secured more than six per cent of the vote and 25 seats in parliament, where its members wear military-style uniform.

Mike de Kock: questioning future after being shaken by intimidationCredit: Edward Whitaker

It is led by the firebrand Julius Malema, who revels in publicity and confrontation. His policy of land nationalisation without compensation has proved so popular that it has since been adopted by the ruling National Congress Party for fear of having its support swept from under it.

There have already been suggestions that the EFF, following the well-publicised success of its support in Johannesburg, will now turn its attentions to stable staff at other major centres such as Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth.

There was a strike at the Summerveld training centre in Durban three days before the Durban July but this was without any obvious political interference and was seen as an attempt to take advantage of its proximity to the biggest race meeting of the year. It proved successful as the trainers offered to pay a sizeable increase.

De Kock, still stung by what happened in Johannesburg, said at the Durban July: “I'm keeping my options open but I'm cutting my string down.”

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