Visuals of masses of striking National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) members toyi-toying for improved salaries are flighted on television news for days on end.
The general public remains mostly ignorant of the plight of the striking worker, until a time when petrol stations run dry and they cannot fill up their vehicles with diesel as was the case in Polokwane this week.
Only when necessary services become unavailable, reality forces everybody to adapt to the situation.
There is the negative aspect of any such mass action. When the demands of the affected parties are not met, they revert to a strike and services come to a halt as they down tools.
Their conduct starts having an impact on the lives of other citizens, who promptly come to the realisation that a disgruntled workforce can have a paralysing effect on the economy.
It is a force to be reckoned with.