Absent Due to Protests - Do Employers Still Have to Pay?

The recent unrest and protest action in the Tembisa community disrupted public transport leaving commuters stranded. Protesters "locked down" the community and many residents feared to leave their homes. 

Many employers had employee's who were impacted or prevented from attending work as a result of the protests, but are employers still required to pay employee's who do not attend work, arguably due to no fault of their own?