The National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) says that it has received a section 189 notice from Greyhound operator, Unitrans Passenger, stating the company plans to close its business.
In its notice, Unitrans said that its business was negatively affected by South Africa’s Covid-19 travel restrictions, and that the company dealt with ‘extremely difficult conditions’ which has impacted its trading performance.
It also indicated that it does not see sustainable revenue in the foreseeable future. Unitrans Passenger currently employs more than 3,000 employees , with 693 jobs affected by the closure of Greyhound, Magic Bus and Megabus Midrand.
Commenting on the notice, Numsa said that the country cannot afford to lose any more jobs at a time where the country is experiencing some of the worst conditions for the working class and the poor.
It added that these lost jobs would affect thousands of people who rely on support from the employees, and that the government has not done enough to offer support to small and medium-sized businesses during the country’s lockdown.
Employees at Unitrans Passenger were served with section 189 notice cos the company intends to restructure and close #Greyhound#MagicTransfer and #Megabus by the 15th of February 2021. These closures will result in at least 693 workers being jobless.@IrvinJimSA.@SAFTU_mediapic.twitter.com/uUwEjMMR1u
NUMSA (@Numsa_Media) February 3, 2021
In a statement published on Wednesday, Greyhound said that its services will run until 14 February 2021, before shutting down. The group said that passengers with tickets booked for services after this date will be refunded.
All passengers who have tickets booked for services after this date will be refunded in full. For assistance with receiving your refund, contact our Call Centre 011 611 8000 or 087 352 0352 or email your ticket reference number and contact details to [email protected]
It has been our pleasure connecting you across Southern Africa for the past 37 years. Thank you to all our passengers for your continued support.
According to the groups website, Greyhound was the first luxury coach operator to start an intercity scheduled service in South Africa as far back as 1984. The group said it now carries more than 14 million passengers a year over a distance of over 25 million km.
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