Petrol Strike: Pumps Dry

Those in South Africa are likely to have heard about the recent strike by fuel truck drivers. Yesterday Cape Town was hit by the strike, while Johannesburg and Pretoria have been feeling the impact earlier this week. I was one of the unfortunate to get to the petrol station too late as by yesterday most pumps were already dry.

The drivers were given an 8% wage increase, but they are demanding a 9.5% increase as well as demanding temporary workers be made permanent. While in South Africa we are actually very lucky that we aren't that badly affected by strikes (I know it's far worse in Europe), it's awful just thinking about how such a simple problem can have widespread consequences affecting so many people. Think about how many people are stuck without any petrol, unable to use their cars at all!

It appears as though the situation is improving with oil companies using contract drivers to deliver petrol. They still haven't come to an agreement and one only hopes all will return to normal operations quickly.