In our Monday roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that have appeared since
midday on Friday, 31 March 2017.
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Gigaba not the right man for the finance minister’s job‚ says Cosatu TimesLive reports that trade union federation Cosatu says newly appointed Finance Minister Malusi Gigaba is not the right person for the job as he doesn't have an economic background. President Jacob Zuma axed Gigaba's predecessor Pravin Gordhan and his deputy Mcebisi Jonas late on Thursday in a widely-criticised a move. "Gigaba is no economist. We need to bring more progressive economic thinkers in that institution so that they temper the hard-line neo-liberal position of the past. Gigaba is not going to formulate policy as a political head. He is going to provide political leadership to people who are in charge of analysing the global economic situation‚" said Cosatu spokesperson Sizwe Pamla. He also indicated that Cosatu’s were not informed about the reshuffling of Zuma’s cabinet‚ but learnt about it through the media as they were out of the country. Cosatu was due to hold a special central executive committee meeting on Monday to discuss‚ among other issues‚ the implications of Zuma's cabinet reshuffle. Read this report by Neo Goba in full at TimesLive Cabinet reshuffle, Zuma resignation on agenda for Cosatu’s Monday CEC meeting EWN reports that union federation Cosatu says it will be holding a central executive committee (CEC) meeting on Monday to discuss, among many issues, the SA Communist Party’s (SACP’s) call for the resignation of President Jacob Zuma. As a tripartite alliance member Cosatu says it would be unfair to pre-empt the outcome of the meeting. The SACP issued a statement on Friday saying the reckless actions of the president have once more plunged the ANC led-movement, democratic institutions and the country in general into deep crisis. Cosatu's Sizwe Pamla said: “It’s Cosatu’s special CEC on Monday, so it would be unfair of me to undercut or pre-empt what the CEC is likely to say. All of these issues, including what the party (SACP) has said today (Friday) and the reshuffle will be on the agenda." Read this report by Katleho Sekhotho in full at EWN. Read the SACP’s press statement at Politicsweb See too, Cosatu ‘nie geken’ in kabinetskuiwe, at Netwerk24 (limit on access) Muthambi’s appointment as public service minister a reward for mediocrity, says Sadtu ANA reports that the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) on Friday accused President Jacob Zuma of “rewarding mediocrity” after he moved Faith Muthambi from the communications ministry to the pblic service and administration ministry. The union said in a statement that it was shocked that the President appointed an individual “who had spectacularly failed in her previous portfolio into the Public Service and Administration Department.” Sadtu went on to say: “The decision by the president indicates that we have a government that rewards mediocrity and that there are no consequences for those who fail to deliver. The president through this bizarre decision has failed to show any appreciation and sensitivity for labour peace in the public service.” Sadtu accused Zuma of abusing his constitutional prerogative to appoint ministers to further his agenda by promoting “internal factional battles” and not promoting a developmental state. Read this report in full at IOL News. Read Sadtu’s press statement at SA Labour News SA Policing Union welcomes 'energetic, young minister' Fikile Mbalula ANA reports that the SA Policing Union (Sapu) on Friday welcomed the appointment of the "young and energetic" new Police Minister Fikile Mbalula, who was once a deputy minister of police. The union said the police department was in a crisis and noted that it had previously called for former minister Nathi Nhleko and his deputy Maggie Sotyu to be fired. “The appointment of Mr Fikile Mbalula as the new police minister and Mr Bongani Mkongi as his deputy is a positive step towards stabilising this vital department," the union said on Friday. Sapu pledged to work well with the new political leadership of the police to improve service delivery. Read this report in full at IOL News. Read Sapu’s press statement in this regard at Sapu online Vavi calls for shutdown of Treasury in wake of cabinet shake-up EWN reports that activist and union federation leader Zwelinzima Vavi has called on South Africans to express their dissatisfaction with the recent Cabinet reshuffle and mobilise a complete shutdown of Treasury on Monday. He said he would be leading a demonstration to the Treasury, in the quest to unite citizens in stopping President Jacob Zuma from destroying the future of South Africans. Vavi explained himself as follows: “South Africa now needs to mobilise itself to save our country from being turned into a capitalist kleptocracy by chronic capitalists crooks.” Last week, Vavi lead another march to Treasury, which he described as a success. A number of demonstrations against the reshuffle have been scheduled for Monday, including a movement called #BlackMonday, which has called on all South Africans to wear black in solidarity. Read this report by Kgomotso Modise in full at EWN. See too, Thieves have now seized National Treasury, says Vavi, at The Citizen. And also, ANC destroying the foundations of democracy, says Vavi, at The Citizen Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Elephants trample Kruger Park employees‚ killing one and injuring another TimesLive reports that a female SANParks employee was trampled to death by an elephant in the Kruger National Park on Thursday. SANParks spokesperson William Mabasa said another woman had also been injured when a group of employees were attacked by a herd of elephant. The incident happened in the Mooiplaas section of the park near Mopani Camp. Police and paramedics were called to the scene, but they could not save the life of the one employee who had already died. The injured employee was rushed to a hospital in Tzaneen. The circumstances are still being investigated in order to establish what happened. Read this report by Jeff Wicks in full at TimesLive Reward of R1-million offered after guard killed in Pinetown ATM heist Independent on Saturday reports that SBV Services is offering a R1-million reward for information leading to the arrests and conviction of armed robbers who carried out a cash-in-transit heist at an ATM in Pinetown. On Friday morning, a SBV officer was shot and killed and another is in critical condition. On Friday night, SBV Services CE Mark Barrett confirmed that the R1m reward had been put up and he commended the company’s team “for their bravery in defending this violent attack.” The shootout started in central Pinetown at about 7am as SBV guards were transferring money into an ATM machine on the corner of Dale and Moodie streets. A gang of armed men apparently attacked the guards as cash was being offloaded. Gunfire was then exchanged. A 50-year-old suspect was arrested at the scene. The suspects fled in two getaway vehicles. Read this report by Tanya Waterworth in full at Independent on Saturday. See too, Pinetown guards attacked while depositing money, at News24 R1m reward for Athlone cash-in-transit heist info News24 reports that a reward of R1m is being offered for information about an armed robbery in Cape Town that left one security guard dead and another injured, cash-in-transit company SBV Services said on Sunday. The guards were servicing an ATM in Athlone on Saturday morning when they came under attack on the corner of Klipfontein and Carnie Roads. Western Cape police said five armed, unknown suspects made off with an undisclosed amount of money. SBV’s South African CEO Mark Barrett said: “I am deeply saddened that one of our employees has lost his life during the attack and that another employee is in a critical condition.” Barrett said he was horrified by the ongoing violent attacks against those in the industry. Read this report by Jenna Etheridge in full at News24. See too, Wag tydens transitorooftog in Athlone doodgeskiet, at Maroela Media Over 50 workers at Germiston factory rushed to hospital after chemical leak News24 reports that more than 50 employees from a chemical factory in Germiston had to be rushed to hospital for respiratory problems on Monday morning after an alleged chemical leak. ER24’s Russel Meiring said they had found between 50 and 100 employees outside the factory. “The exact number of patients is not yet known, due to the number of services on scene," said Meiring. The patients were treated for their injuries and then transferred to local hospitals for further treatment. The type of chemical and the source of the leak is as yet unknown. Read this report by Sisa Canca in full at News24 Servicing of fire hydrants at gutted Durban warehouse was Transnet’s responsibility Sunday Tribune reports that Transnet has accepted it was its responsibility to ensure that fire hydrants were serviced at a Durban warehouse which it had leased out and where a major fire broke out last week. Transnet Property CE Thabo Lebelo indicated that what happened in the warehouse and the condition of the fire suppression system would be a part of the investigation. He said he was not in a position to speculate as to the condition of the system, “but as the owner of the shed, the responsibility of making sure that it works rests with us.” The South Durban Community Environmental Alliance hosted a series of meetings to address community concerns and issues surrounding health impacts, damage to property, and an emergency plan for south Durban. Residents called for a full and independent investigation into the cause of the fire and for accountability from the eThekwini Municipality and Transnet. They commended firefighters for extinguishing the blaze that raged for three days. Read this report by Siboniso Mngadi in full at Sunday Tribune Other internet posting(s) in this news category
DiamondCorp to retrench all employees at its Lace mine Miningmx reports that DiamondCorp is to retrench all employees at its Lace diamond mine near Kroonstad in Free State province. The embattled diamond miner, which is in business rescue, said in a statement on Monday that discussions under the auspices of the CCMA between the Association of Mineworkers & Construction Union (Amcu) and the business rescue practitioner have terminated without a settlement being reached on a collective agreement to allow care and maintenance to commence. “Consequently, effective April 3 all employees will be retrenched.” A consequence of the retrenchment would be that previous bail-out finance arranged with the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) in terms of the business rescue procedure would no longer be available. Thus, unless there is an accelerated plan and route for funding in place which can be completed by mid-May 2017, then it is likely that the group would need to be placed into administration. Read this report by David McKay in full at Miningmx. Read DiamondCorp’s regulatory statement at Sharenet. See too, DiamondCorp to retrench Lace employees, at Mining Weekly HIV and tuberculosis in mining sector addressed by new five year government plan Mining Review reports that the SA government has launched a National Strategic Plan (NSP) for HIV, tuberculosis (TB) and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The plan draws on the vision of the United Nations programme of zero new HIV infections, zero preventable deaths associated with HIV and zero discrimination associated with HIV. It is also in line with the World Health Organisation’s goals for reducing TB incidents and mortality. Southern Africa has some of the highest rates of TB infection in the world, averaging at 591 cases per 100,000 people compared to the global average of 126 cases per 100,000 people and the mining sector in southern Africa accounts for the highest level of tuberculosis infections in the region. This fourth NSP seeks to scale up successes while introducing new strategies to prevent new infections, identify infected people sooner and successfully treat and care for them. It outlines the strategic framework for a multi-sectoral partnership to accelerate progress in reducing the morbidity and mortality associated with HIV, TB and STIs. Read this report in full at Mining Review Other general internet posting(s) on mining
Police allegedly evicted KZN mortuary staff after sit-in over protective clothing Daily News reports that police last week evicted staff at the Jozini mortuary for staging a sit-in over grievances that included a lack of protective uniforms, a mortuary member of staff has said. Among their other grievances was the lack of a telephone in their working space, leaving them using their cellphones and airtime to do their jobs. “We last received uniforms in 2013, although department policy says we should receive new uniforms every two years and basics such as new T-shirts and socks each year. We also don’t have basic necessities such as a sink to wash our hands… and a fridge to put our food in,” a disgruntled worker said. However, a provincial police spokesperson denied workers had been evicted and said these were baseless allegations and that no such incident had been reported. Yet, a Jozini mortuary technician insisted that police had evicted them from the premises. A health spokesperson admitted that due to complications and delays with the tender and procurement process, the provision of new uniforms has not happened. Read this report by Samkelo Mtshali in full at Daily News
Solidarity seeks court intervention to place MEIBC under administration Engineering News reports that Solidarity has filed an application at the Labour Court to have the Metal and Engineering Industries Bargaining Council (MEIBC) put under administration. This was made known on Thursday by the trade union’s deputy general secretary Marius Croucamp, who said the bargaining council was operating under severe financial difficulty. The MEIBC is the statutory body where collective bargaining between the union and employer parties in the industry take place and where disputes are considered and resolved. “The MEIBC is insolvent and there are judgements against it from creditors,” Croucamp said. He explained that Solidarity, with support from the Department of Labour, wanted the court to appoint a competent person to oversee the financial activities of the MEIBC. Croucamp noted that attempts have been made to rescue the council, but there have been difficulties in getting all the parties involved to agree on what steps to take, which is why Solidarity has been forced to take litigious action. Read this report in full at Engineering News
Fourth quarter 2016 saw 1,900 jobs lost in vehicle manufacturing industry Business Report writes that a total of 1,900 jobs were lost in the vehicle manufacturing industry in the fourth quarter of last year. This represented a decline of 6% in total employment in the industry to 29,489 jobs on 31 December from 31,389 jobs at the end of the third quarter. Nico Vermeulen of the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of SA (Naamsa) said employment levels in the fourth quarter declined fairly substantially, principally because of the lay-off of temporary workers at three major industry plants. This followed stable industry employment over the past four years. The plants were not identified. Total new vehicle sales declined by 11.4% last year. Vermeulen said that barring unforeseen political events and instability, new vehicle sales this year could improve modestly in volume terms Read this report by Roy Cokayne in full at Business Report Other internet posting(s) in this news category Nelson Mandela Bay taxi drivers fear job losses under the IPTS, at RNews
UJ insourcing process concludes, more than 1000 outsourced workers benefit ANA reports that the insourcing process at the University of Johannesburg (UJ) has been successfully concluded and the last cohort of 640 cleaning staff became new UJ employees as they commenced work on Saturday. Since the process started in 2015, the university has accelerated the insourcing of outsourced workers, with improved working conditions and benefits extended to their children, UJ said in a statement on Sunday. “The university unequivocally supported the quest to provide decent working conditions, fair wages, and improved benefits for these outsourced workers. This is evident with the insourcing of gardening and grounds, security services, and cleaning services which were traditionally delivered as outsourced services,” UJ deputy vice chancellor Tumi Mketi said. She went on to state: “The university set a target to finalise the insourcing of all concerned workers by the end of June 2017 and we are proud that this deadline was achieved and concluded two months ahead of time.” Read this report in full at The Citizen. See too, Insourcing at UJ completed, at News24 “Insourcing at UWC unaffordable”, says university in response to dismissed guards GroundUp that, although the University of the Western Cape (UWC) has said it cannot afford insourcing, dismissed security guards say they will not give up their fight to be reinstated. On 13 January, service provider Securitas dismissed the 144 workers on charges of being absent from work without permission, “hostage” taking and “assault and robbery”. The workers have admitted to being absent from work, but said they were forced to leave as students had shut down the university in October 2016. An application for their reinstatement has been referred to the CCMA. Yet, the dismissed workers, who are “desperate to start working”, want to know why they cannot be insourced by UWC. University spokesperson Luthando Tyhalibongo indicated that the Council had reviewed its financials and found that “insourcing at UWC was unaffordable”. He said the Council has already supplemented the income of outsourced gardeners, cleaning and security staff by R2,000 a month. The University has offered to assist Securitas with mediation should they decide to take up the offer. Read this report by Barbara Maregele in full at GroundUp
North West University opens nursing science building at Mafikeng campus The New Age reports that the new R37m nursing science building at North West University (NWU) Mafikeng campus has been officially opened. Although the building has been in operation since 2015, the campus felt that it was necessary to officially open it and celebrate it with the public and those who learn and teach in it. Yet, NWU vice-chancellor Prof Dan Kgwadi said that, while the institution welcomed the opening, the tendency of some students to burn property was a worrying factor. In 2016, the university suffered a major loss after a violent #FeesMustFall protest left the administration block and the science centre in ashes due to petrol bombing. Health MEC Dr Magome Masike said the opening of the building was another milestone for the province. He added: “Human resources is a problem which is facing the nursing fraternity. We hope to increase the number of students who are graduating annually from our nursing schools to 1,000. The department appreciates the efforts by the university to encourage education in nursing.” Read this report by Elfas Torerai and Nthusang Lefafa in full at The New Age Porsche opens new skills training centre Business Report writes about the opening on Thursday of a new training centre by luxury vehicle manufacturer Porsche in association with the Don Bosco Salesian Institute Youth Projects (Siyp) in Cape Town and local Porsche importer LSM Distributors. This means that seventy-five young men and women from disadvantaged backgrounds are set to get a skills training opportunity as service mechatronics to boost their chances of employment in the automotive industry. Porsche said the course, which will run for three years, will give the youths career opportunities in the Volkswagen group and beyond. Eight women and 16 men will participate in the first year of training. The content has been designed by the brand’s after-sales experts. Porsche PR manager Christo Kruger said: “Many elements, including a Porsche for training purposes, are still outstanding but will be in place when the programme commences in July.” The training programme is expected to fund itself from the fourth year. Read this report by Joseph Booysen in full at Business Report
See our listing of links to labour articles published on the internet from Friday, 31 March to Sunday, 2 April 2017 at SA Labour News
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