Nicola Mawson
About 300 workers at BMW’s Rosslyn plant, north of Pretoria, downed tools yesterday over claims of “mass dismissals”. BMW, headquartered in Germany, has dismissed these allegations as unfounded rumours.
This strike follows a recent labour dispute in the automotive sector, where workers from the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) struck at Ford South Africa's Silverton plant in Pretoria in July. The strike was resolved when Ford paid workers a R20 000 bonus.
Yesterday, a worker at BMW’s Rosslyn plant said, on condition of anonymity, that staff were disgruntled over alleged dismissals at the plant. He would not provide further information and several spokespeople from Numsa, the union representing the workers who have downed tools, did not respond to requests for comment.
BMW Group South Africa has denied the claims of workforce reductions, stating that the rumours about cutting shifts are untrue. The company attributed the strike to "an ongoing fraud investigation within the BMW Employees Medical Aid Scheme (BEMAS)“.
The plant will produce the iconic next-generation plug-in hybrid BMW X3 for global export market from next month after ending production of the third-generation model, with 400 000 units made, in August. The last vehicle, a now-memorable Carbon Black BMW X3, was shipped to a customer in Germany.
More than 96% of the cars made at the plant are exported to over 40 global markets, including sub-Saharan Africa.
In a holding statement, BMW said it did not tolerate “any acts of bribery, fraud or corruption by its employees. All internal policies and procedures are being followed, and the necessary disciplinary action will be taken for any employee found in transgression of our disciplinary code”.
It added that BEMAS’ integrity is vital to its value proposition as an employer. “Its core function is to guarantee that our employees and their families have access to the best possible healthcare”.
The company, which has produced more than 1.7 million vehicles at its Rosslyn plant over more than half a century, said if there were any terminations because of the investigation, “we will recruit and upskill new associates, ensuring business continuity”.
Rosslyn was BMW’s second manufacturing plant outside of Germany, with production dating back to 1968 when Praetor Monteerders began assembling automobiles.
These cars used BMW engines and drivetrains fitted to Hans Glas sheet metal pressed and shipped from Dingolfing in Germany. In 1973, BMW in Germany acquired full shareholding in the plant and established BMW Group South Africa.
Rosslyn, which can produce 76 000 cars a year, has a workforce of more than 2 000 direct associates, and over 23 000 individual’s livelihoods are directly tied to BMW Group South Africa's operations. In 2021, BMW lost production of about 700 cars a day after strike action hit suppliers, mostly in the steel sector.
Last year, the BMW Group announced an investment of R4.2 billion to get Rosslyn read for electromobility, which was accompanied by specialist training for more than 300 employees at the plant.
BMW said it is co-operating with law enforcement in its investigation to ensure that the rule of law is upheld.
BUSINESS REPORT