Hundreds of stewards strike outside Ellis Park ahead of World Cup match to demand more pay

Hundreds of stewards strike outside Ellis Park

JOHANNESBURG — Hundreds of stadium stewards were striking to demand more pay outside Ellis Park ahead of the World Cup match Tuesday between Brazil and North Korea.

A 26-year-old man from Tembisa said that more than 2,000 stewards have been striking since 12:30 p.m. The match kicks off at 8:30 p.m. (1830 GMT).

He says he’s been offered 190 rand ($25) to work 10 hours. He says the pay has been going down since they started work on May 27, adding he would work for 500 rand ($65).

The man spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisals.

World Cup organizers have said that police will take over security if stewards in Johannesburg follow colleagues in Cape Town and Durban by striking.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

DURBAN, South Africa (AP) — Some 2,000 World Cup security stewards protested over wages Tuesday, calling on FIFA to confirm what they should be paid for working at the tournament.

Most of the demonstrators left after a couple of hours when they were paid 205 rand ($26.50) in exchange for turning in their orange stewards’ bibs.

“I am not happy about it, but I’m all right,” a man who gave only his first name, James, said as he left the protest.

The demonstration started with about 150 stewards dancing, chanting and singing as they walked from near the Moses Mabhida Stadium to a rally near Durban’s busy downtown railroad. As their numbers swelled, they walked in an orderly column back to the stadium, where dozens of police shepherded them into a fenced-off field.

“Workers came to collect their wages for the days they have worked,” one of the protest leaders, David Skhumbo, said.

Tuesday’s protest came a day before Spain and Switzerland were to play at the imposing stadium close to Durban’s Indian Ocean beach front.

The stewards and a union official both called on FIFA to mediate in the dispute.

“We are trying to gather more information, so we can attempt to engage FIFA and the local organizing committee and find a solution,” South African Transport and Allied Workers Union coordinator Mzwandile Jackson Simon said.

“There are indications they are willing to work something out,” he added. “I don’t think police will manage on their own.”

Simon said the union was convinced that security contractor Stallion Security Consortium had made wage commitments to the stewards that were not fulfilled, and said the company needed to be an active part of efforts to resolve the dispute.

Stallion has refused to comment on the dispute.

On Monday, police took over security at stadiums in Durban and Cape Town amid protests by stewards in the escalating pay dispute. Both cities are scheduled to host semifinals next month. Police were posted around the Durban stadium Tuesday and carried out checks that previously were done by the stewards.

Demonstrators in Durban waved placards saying: “We need our money, then we can feel it,” a play on a local World Cup slogan.

“We want people of FIFA to confirm our earnings because Stallion has robbed us,” protest leader Sibusiso Mthethwa said.

Durban police used tear gas and rubber bullets after Sunday’s match between Germany and Australia to disperse a crowd of stewards at the stadium.

The chief executive of the World Cup organizing committee, Danny Jordaan, said Monday he respects workers’ rights but called match-day disruptions “unacceptable” and said authorities “will not hesitate to take action in such instances.”

Mthethwa said the protesters did not want to inconvenience thousands of fans who have traveled to South Africa.

“We are not fighting with our visitors,” he said. “We like our visitors. We will protect them even when we are outside of the stadium.”

Police moved in to take over security at Cape Town’s Green Point Stadium just hours before the start of the Italy and Paraguay match Monday night, after about 500 security staff and employers tried to negotiate a settlement to their pay dispute. Police called in 1,500 national police trainees to take over security, with long lines of fans waiting to get into the stadium.

The standoff caused hours of delays, but all fans were seated in time for kickoff.