About 250 workers at the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC) downed tools on Wednesday, the National Health and Allied Workers Union (Nehawu) said.
Nehawu spokesperson Kwame Mzileni said negotiations between workers and the employer reached a final deadlock last Wednesday.
The workers - all Nehawu members - are demanding their bonuses which were due in December last year.
"We also do not understand why there is such a huge wage gap between top management and the lowest paid staff. We want that gap reduced," said Mzileni.
He said the current wage gap between NHBRC chief executive Phetola Makgathe and the lowest paid staff was R1,6-million.
"Executive management personnel received wage increases ranging from 33 to 50 percent in 2006.
"They further got an incentive bonus of about five to seven percent without any performance measurement tool in place, while the rest of the staff did not get anything."
Mzileni said it took the employer almost nine months to agree to give workers a seven percent wage increase, although "they didn't think twice before offering increases of 33 percent to some (management personnel) and 50 percent to the CEO".
He said it was "unreasonable" of the employer to be discussing last year's bonuses now.
"It has taken them more than seven months to decide on the issue and that is unreasonable."
The negotiations began in August last year and the last meeting between the two parties was last Wednesday.
The strike action started with pickets outside the NHBRC head offices in Bryanston at noon.
Mzileni said workers were also picketing at the council's regional offices in Cape Town, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein, Nelspruit, Polokwane and Kimberley.
About 250 of the 350 workers at the council took part in the strike and were Nehawu members, said Mzileni.
Management chief negotiator Peter Latta said he was not immediately able to comment, as management was still in a meeting discussing the strike late on Wednesday afternoon. - Sapa
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