This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.
In our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Tuesday, 26 January 2021.
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Leading economists warn that level 3 restrictions will cost one in 12 South Africans their jobs Economists Mike Schüssler and Phumlani Majozi write that nearly 1.4 million formal and informal jobs in the SA economy are at risk, with the current Covid-19 lockdown alert Level 3 restrictions having a direct impact across at least seven sectors. The total number of people employed across these sectors, namely travel, tourism, entertainment, leisure, manufacturing, agriculture and services not classified elsewhere, equates to one in 12 jobs being directly at risk of destruction. If immediate family and dependants who rely on a breadwinner’s wages are included, the Level 3 restrictions could impact millions more. Since many also help dependants outside the immediate family, the overall number of people impacted could be as much as 10% of the SA population. The authors note that some provinces have even higher numbers at risk, namely one in six jobs in the Western Cape and one in five in the Northern Cape. The risk for the Eastern Cape is that only one in four adults will have a job if the jobs at risk are destroyed. Overall, SA unemployment could rise from 43.1% to 51.6% within a year, driven by the potential Level 3 job losses and increasing numbers of job seekers. In addition to such unacceptable job losses, the Level 3 restrictions are said to be having detrimental repercussions as well or the turnover of industry, while their impact on the fiscus is certainly well over R10 billion per month. The authors say government has a moral duty to not cause business failure, and to avoid mass hunger. They say it must immediately reopen the economy and allow businesses to take the necessary hygienic precautions without undue interference. Read the full original of the abovementioned analysis by Mike Schüssler and Phumlani Majozi at Moneyweb <https://www.moneyweb.co.za/news/economy/level-3-restrictions-will-cost-one-in-12-south-africans-their-jobs/> Booze ban losses far outweigh the benefits of a prohibition, industry study indicates BL Premium reports that according to a new report, the unintended consequences of an alcohol ban, which include the rapid rise of illicit liquor production and reduced tax revenue, far outweigh the efficacy of a prohibition. The study was backed and paid for by the industry through US-based not-for-profit organisation Transnational Alliance to Combat Illicit Trades (Tracit), whose members include AB InBev and Heineken. Tracit, which aims to mitigate the economic and social damage of illicit trade, said emergency restrictions on alcohol production and sales have devastated a legitimate industry, jeopardising long-term employment and growth. Curbs also fuel a parallel underground market that harms the legal sector’s ability to rebound once restrictions are lifted. According to the report, which analysed restrictions in various countries, including SA, Mexico and India, the longer legal businesses are sidelined, the greater is the opportunity for illicit traders to capture market share and fortify demand for their untaxed, unregulated products. The R140bn liquor industry, which contributes 3% to SA’s GDP and is responsible for 1-million jobs, was dealt a serious blow and left fuming late in December when the government announced an immediate ban on alcohol, saying it was critical to reduce the alcohol-related trauma load on hospitals. This was the third such ban, after sales were prohibited in March and July, leading to a jobs bloodbath of about 165,000 workers. Sibani Mngadi of the SA Liquor Brand Owners Association claimed that the ban was a severe threat to the SA economy. “There is an enormous loss of taxation including VAT and excise, as well as the loss of jobs contributed by legal alcohol producers and merchants to the fiscus,” Mngadi said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bekezela Phakathi at BusinessLive (paywall access only) Job cuts begin at Distell, SAB as uncertainty due to alcohol sale ban dampens liquor industry spirits Fin24 reports that liquor producers and companies along the value chain are beginning to reel under the effects of the ongoing alcohol sale ban, with some forecasting further cuts to already reduced number of contract workers. Others are factoring in the possibility of retrenchments or preparing to turn off their taps for good. The third government-imposed ban on the sale of alcohol in December was implemented to keep hospital beds free of liquor-related trauma cases, but the move has come at a hefty cost for an industry that employs more than 415,000 people. On Monday, Savanna maker Distell said it had reduced the number of its contract workers to 326, from 536 in January last year. "We currently are using 210 less contractors than normal in our supply chain … renewals will solely depend on further demand and our ability to trade. If the ban is prolonged for another month, there is likely to be a further reduction in contracted employment," said Distell's Frank Ford. Despite cutting back its contract workers, Ford said retrenchments were a last resort and staff had taken a 10% salary reduction, with executives and board members taking bigger cuts. Meantime, SA Breweries (SAB) announced that it had suspended 550 temporary contract workers across its local operations. The AB InBev owned producer said it was doing everything in its power to avoid retrenchments, but communication and engagement from the government on the timelines for the ban made business planning difficult. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Penelope Mashego at Fin24 Union federations back ANC calls for R200bn loan guarantee scheme to be fundamentally restructured BL Premium reports that trade union federations say moves by the ANC to overhaul the government’s R200bn loan guarantee scheme will save jobs and cushion small businesses from the negative effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the economy. The scheme is one of the key pillars of the R500bn social and economic package announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa in April 2020 to help SA stay afloat during the lockdown. It is aimed at assisting firms that need additional resources to bridge them through the pandemic, but has been beset by low take-up and has already had to be overhauled once since it was launched. In his remarks to the ANC national executive meeting on Sunday, Ramaphosa said: “The meeting agreed that the national loan guarantee scheme must be fundamentally restructured to improve its accessibility and it should enable the participation of nonbank SMME funders.” But, he did not explain what they planned to fix in the scheme and how they would go about amending it. However, Sizwe Pamla of Cosatu said banks needed to be forced to review the interest they charged and development finance institutions should be part of the scheme. “Banks should be encouraged to explore equity options, where they don’t saddle these companies with unaffordable debt but consider taking ownership stakes. Grant options should be explored by government in hard-hit sectors where jobs are at stake. All of this though should be conditional on jobs being saved,” he suggested. Fedusa’s Godfrey Selematsela said restructuring the scheme would lead to many small, medium and macro enterprises being able to access funding from the scheme to “enable them to sustain their operations and retain jobs”. Nactu’s Narius Moloto said they had been calling for the scheme to be overhauled because it discriminated against small businesses not qualifying for bank loans. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (paywall access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Number of companies in business rescue set to spike in 2021 BL Premium reports that the number of companies in business rescue is set to spike in 2021 as the effects of continued Covid-19 trading restrictions bring businesses that may have held on last year to their knees. According to the Companies and Intellectual Property Commission’s most recent figures, published in October 2020, 233 companies started business rescue proceedings between April and October 2020, from 216 in 2019. Hans Klopper of business advisory firm BDO expects the figure to rise significantly in 2021 as the effects of restrictions become evident. “People are getting into trouble as we speak,” he said, adding that though he expected the retail and hospitality sectors to be hardest hit, there would be an impact in “every conceivable sector”. Ryszard Lisinski of law firm Fluxmans concurred: “There’s going to be a hangover from Covid-19. The longer the restrictions are in place, the bleeding will continue and there will be an increase in business rescue applications.” Klopper said many businesses would try to survive but he recommended that they take action early and begin the business rescue process. “If they see the light they should take action early before the train hits them.” The latest Stats SA figures, released in November 2020, show liquidations were up 30.7% in the three months ending November 2020, year on year. Liquidations of companies rose by 31 cases and of close corporations by 22. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jane Steinacker at BusinessLive (paywall access only) SAA says long-standing agreement with pilots’ association hampers transformation and cost cutting Fin24 reports that SA Airways (SAA) asserts that the regulatory agreement it has with the SAA Pilots' Association (Saapa) prevents it from achieving "meaningful and expeditious transformation" in compliance with the Constitution and the Employment Equity Act. This was indicated in a letter dated 12 January 2021 from SAA's HR department to Saapa members. Saapa members have been locked out by the airline's business rescue practitioners (BRPs) since 18 December 2020, mainly due to a stalemate regarding proposed changes the airline wants to be made to a long-standing regulation agreement with the pilots union. Saapa apparently intends to apply for leave to appeal a recent Labour Court decision that the lockout of its members by the airline was permissible. SAA sees the regulatory agreement as "a significant impediment" to the reduction of certain costs and increasing productivity. Particularly problematic for SAA is the application of seniority in terms of the regulatory agreement, which directly controls the manner in which pilots are employed and dealt with by SAA, including promotions, demotions and salaries. "Given the make-up of SAA's pilot list, which comprises overwhelmingly of white males, this operates to the detriment of and unfairly discriminates both directly and indirectly against black, coloured and Indian men and especially women," states the letter. SAA wants Saapa to conclude "a mutually satisfactory settlement agreement" with the airline. SAA has been in business rescue since December 2019 and the BRPs are trying to complete the implementation of a business rescue plan. That will clear the way for a "new SAA", for which the government needs a strategic equity partner. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Carin Smith at Fin24 Payment of SAA voluntary severance packages expected by end of January Moneyweb reports that employees of SA Airways (SAA) who applied for voluntary severance packages (VSPs) can expect to receive their monies by the end of January, according to unions at the airline. The National Transport Movement (NTM) and the SA Transport & Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu) have told their members that the R10.5 billion required to fund the SAA business rescue plan and to pay for the VSPs has now been made available to the airline’s business rescue practitioners (BRPs) from the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE). This has yet to be confirmed by government. In a communication to union members last week, NTM President Mashudu Raphetha said the VSP payments could be expected “within a few days”. Satawu’s Nelson Lamityi also confirmed that the VSP funds were expected to be disbursed by the end of January. Satawu further expects the BRPs to hand over the reins to the airline’s interim board once the rescue process has been concluded. By September last year more than 3,000 of SAA’s 5,000 employees had applied for the VSPs, which are expected to cost the airline around R2.2 billion. The airline has already received R1.5 billion from the DPE that has been used for the payments to employees who accepted the three-month back-pay deal. The National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) and the SA Cabin Crew Association (Sacca) initially rejected the offer but have taken the DPE and the BRPs to court and demanded that their members be paid the same funds as other SAA employees. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thando Maeko at Moneyweb <https://www.moneyweb.co.za/news/companies-and-deals/saa-voluntary-severance-packages-payments-expected-end-of-january/>
Following strike, retrenched Macsteel employees back at work for two months for possible placements into vacant posts BL Premium reports that the 99 employees retrenched by Macsteel returned to the workplace on Monday after the steel supplier struck a deal with the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa). On Monday last week, Numsa members at the firm embarked on a strike at all operations across the country, demanding the reinstatement of workers retrenched in December. Numsa general secretary Irvin Jim advised as follows: “According to the agreement, Macsteel must attempt to place retrenched workers into vacant positions before the end of February 2021, and it must ensure that employees are placed into positions which most closely match their previous position. As far as is reasonably possible, Macsteel will ensure that they do not earn less than what they earned before retrenchment. Those successfully placed in vacant positions will start as new employees effective from 1 January.” He went on to indicate: “Furthermore, the settlement ensures that all retrenched workers will retain all monies paid to them, including the severance pay paid to them when they were retrenched during December 2020, even if they are re-hired into a new post.” In terms of the agreement, the striking workers will be returning to their posts on Thursday, but had to report to work on Monday to discuss their placements in vacant positions. Management has given its full assurance that it would “endeavour to place every employee who was retrenched into a new position”. In the event that affected employees don’t agree to taking up any of the vacancies, Numsa has agreed not to take the company back out on strike. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (paywall access only)
Health workers overwhelmed by Covid-19 want help, not praise GroundUp reports that many health professionals are battling to cope emotionally with the surge in Covid-19 cases. “Emotionally, we are not coping. Seeing death at this rate every day is not normal,” said Mosima Mabeba, a nurse working in the intensive care unit (ICU) of a provincial hospital in Limpopo. The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic has hit the hospital hard, she noted. Of five patients on ventilators she cared for recently, only one survived. Health professionals were already under pressure before the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr Nokukhanya Khanyile, who works in the pediatric unit at a Johannesburg hospital, noted. But now, health professionals have no choice but to keep on working because there are patients to care for. The suspension of visiting hours has meant that staff have to support patients who are isolated from their families and deal with the families who are not allowed to view the body of a loved one who died. Healthcare professionals need a channel to express their fatigue and to debrief, said Dr Precious Dohnodzo Chikura, who is completing her community service at a district hospital in Mpumalanga. She has founded Frontline Refuge, an online platform where mental health professionals offer therapy sessions free of charge to colleagues. She observed, however, that while the sentiment behind encouragements like “healthcare workers are heroes” was appreciated, it created a false impression that they did not buckle under the pressure or need support. “There’s a danger in that hero label,” she said, adding that it put health workers in a position where they have to over-perform all the time. “Looking at healthcare workers as heroes neglects the government’s responsibility to provide danger pay, and time off after experiencing trauma,” she pointed out. Read the full original of the excellent report in the above regard by Masego Mafata at GroundUp Solidarity to petition WHO over government’s alleged plans to prioritise black business in vaccine roll-out The Citizen reports that trade union Solidarity says it will send an urgent letter to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National Coronavirus Command Council about government’s apparent plans to promote black empowerment in the rollout of Covid-19 vaccines. President Cyril Ramaphosa reportedly told the ANC’s top six officials and the Progressive Business Forum last week that the rollout of vaccines in SA would provide an opportunity for black empowerment. Anton van der Bijl, the head of legal service at Solidarity, on Tuesday indicated that the union was against race being part of the country’s Covid-19 vaccination programme. He said the involvement of black businesses should be because they were going to help in an efficient way, and not because they were black. “There’s no time for politics at this point in time. The first and the most [important] thing must be ensuring that everyone, to the extent that the state can, has a vaccine,” Van der Bijl stated. Solidarity said the WHO had a duty to advise the SA government on how to use the most efficient methods during the current pandemic. Solidarity and lobby group AfriForum are also going ahead with their legal action against Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma over a lack of transparency with government’s Covid-19 vaccine plan. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thapelo Lekabe at The Citizen Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Families to visit scene of Netcare medical helicopter crash on Wednesday for private ceremony TimesLIVE reports that the families of a pilot and four healthcare workers who were killed when a medical helicopter crashed in KwaZulu-Natal last week will on Wednesday visit the site of the crash. Netcare group CEO Dr Richard Friedland said the families of the deceased and their colleagues from Netcare and National Airways Corporation (NAC) would be transported from Johannesburg to the site. The medical helicopter crashed near Bergville last Thursday, claiming the lives of all on board. They were identified as Dr Kgopotso Rudolph Mononyane, an anaesthetist; Dr Curnick Siyabonga (Sia) Mahlangu, a cardiothoracic surgeon; Mpho Xaba, a specialist theatre nurse for cardiothoracic and transplant; Sinjin Joshua Farrance, an advanced life support paramedic at Netcare 911; and pilot Mark Stoxreiter. Netcare 911 MD Craig Grindell said a special ceremony has been planned in close consultation with the family members of the fallen heroes. No media will be permitted at the event to respect the privacy of the families. According to Friedland, technical teams from Bell, the helicopter manufacturer, and Rolls-Royce, the manufacturer of the helicopter’s engines, are expected to arrive in the country to assist with the investigation. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Iavan Pijoos at TimesLIVE
With Covid-19 in mind, Arnot OpCo ‘leaving nothing to chance’ in planning for safe restart of operations Mining Weekly reports that Mpumalanga-based coal miner Arnot OpCo is planning the restart of its operations near Middelburg in a safe and controlled manner that takes into account measures to prevent the spread of Covid-19, at a time when SA is battling a second wave of infections. The company says it is not “leaving anything to chance” with preparations under way to deal with a possible spike in infections among its workers. Arnot OpCo has been working on a plan to mitigate a possible Covid-19 resurgence since December, with the planning having started just as workers were preparing to leave the province to celebrate the December break with their families. COO Mathias Sithole said the company has been running targeted awareness campaigns to inform workers about Covid-19, with its Covid-19 strategy being drawn from that of the national Department of Health. As such, the company has set up a new project – Toolbox talks on Covid-19, which is gaining traction among employees. Daily national, provincial, district and Arnot OpCo Covid-19 statistics are discussed during these meetings. The mine’s safety, health, environment and quality division is taked with reviewing Covid-19 data from different sites on an ongoing basis in order to adjust the company’s response to the ever-changing face of the global pandemic. As part of ongoing efforts to keep track of any worker infections, on-site Covid-19 testing has been conducted, with 524 Covid-19 tests having been done since the start of the year. The screening of people who enter the mine is also happening daily. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Mining Weekly Other general posting(s) relating to mining
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