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 early morning roundup, see summaries
of our selection of recent South African labour-
labour-related reports.
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Covid-19 drives excess natural deaths to over 200,000, more than three quarters of which were among the elderly BL Premium reports that more than three quarters of the 203,000 excess deaths from natural causes that have occurred in SA in the past 15 months were among people aged 60 or above. According to the latest weekly report from the Medical Research Council (MRC), this highlighted the devastating toll the coronavirus pandemic has exacted among SA’s elderly. The MRC said the figures might be an undercount, as it was not clear at this stage whether the violence and looting that gripped KwaZulu-Natal and parts of Gauteng last week had delayed the registration of deaths. The MRC publishes a weekly mortality report, based on death records from the Department of Home Affairs. The tally of excess natural deaths for people aged 60 and older between May 2020 and 17 July 2021 came to nearly 156,000, representing 77% of the total. The close correlation between the timing and geographical pattern of the excess deaths from natural causes indicates they were largely due to the pandemic, according to the MRC, which estimates that about 85% of the mortality was due to Covid-19. This highlights the extensive under-reporting of Covid-19 deaths, with the official Covid-19 death toll standing at 66,676 on 17 July. The report shows the weekly number of deaths from unnatural causes fell after the government reintroduced a ban on alcohol sales and tightened the curfew to between 9pm and 4am. But the tally rose in the week to 17 July due to the unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, and taxi violence in Western Cape. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive Vaccine rollout for journalists to start soon, says Sanef News24 reports that the South African National Editors' Forum (Sanef) says the information-gathering process for the vaccination of members of the media aged between 35 and 60 against Covid-19 will be completed on Friday. This cleared up confusion that was created when an online link, allowing journalists to register, was circulated. According to Sanef, media houses were recently asked to complete a registration form for employees and email it to the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS), which was tasked with collecting the forms on behalf of the health department. GCIS has put in place an online form that mirrors and captures the same information and which can also be used for registration of those in the media sector, such as freelance journalists who have not registered. However, journalists whose details have already been sent via their employers are not required to complete the online form as this will create duplications. Freelance journalists who completed the form and sent it via email should not resubmit via the online link. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Marvin Charles at News24 Sun City turned into hospitality industry Covid-19 vaccination site Fin24 reports that Sun International announced on Thursday that the Sun City resort was set to become a vaccination site dedicated to the hospitality industry from Saturday, 24 July. This will apparently be the first such facility of its sort in the industry. The Department of Health has inspected the Sun City vaccination site and given approval for it to operate until December. The resort, however, will aim to complete its vaccination programme within two months. The resort's convention centre will be used as the vaccine centre and the Superbowl will consist of vaccination, discharge and observation areas. The plan is to vaccinate about 7,500 people in three phases. First on the list will be Sun City staff and service providers. About 1,000 staff members over the age of 50 will be attended to first, followed by lower age groups in line with the national approach. Once this phase has been completed, family members of staff will be eligible and then those working at hospitality establishments in the Moses Kotane District. According to Sun City general manager Brett Hoppe, the resort's vaccination drive will include an outreach programme for the surrounding area. Read the full original of the report in the above regard compiled by Carin Smith at Fin24 Sibanye-Stillwater, RBPlat make progress with employee vaccinations Mining Weekly reports that precious metals producer Sibanye-Stillwater has, despite recent disruptions in parts of SA, made significant progress with the roll-out of its Covid-19 vaccination programme. In accordance with the Department of Health (DoH) guidelines and protocols, the group has vaccinated over 10,000 of its employees, or about 12% of its South African workforce, since 25 June. Following the success of the initial phase, the vaccine programme is being extended to another four of the group’s healthcare facilities in three provinces – Gauteng, North West and the Free State – with the capacity to administer 2,500 vaccines daily. This, Sibanye said on Thursday, was sufficient based on the number of vaccines that the group was currently receiving. Subject to DoH approvals and the availability of additional vaccines, Sibanye is prepared to accelerate the rollout to its more than 80,000-strong South African workforce, their dependants and doorstep community members. Meanwhile, platinum group metals (PGM) miner Royal Bafokeng Platinum (RBPlat) has also started administering Covid-19 vaccines to its employees through its Maseve Clinic, in Rustenburg, following accreditation from the DoH. “We plan to roll out the vaccine to our about 10 000 employees and permanent contractors, in line with the government-approved age categories. At this stage, we are targeting at least 200 employees a day and will review this number as we progress,” said CEO Steve Phiri. RBPlat is hopeful that it can extend the vaccination programme to its communities and employees’ dependents in the near future. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Mining Weekly Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Alcohol sector, retailers and restaurant industry join forces to call for end to booze ban BL Premium reports that the alcohol sector, retailers and the restaurant industry on Thursday called for the reopening of the liquor trade, saying many businesses were on the brink of collapse. They cited an easing in Covid-19 infection numbers and a need for the industry to recover from the wave of looting and violence that gripped the country last week. The sale of alcohol was banned for the fourth time on 27 June — bringing the duration of the total liquor bans to 23 weeks and hurting an already ailing restaurant industry, affecting bottlers and decimating the informal tavern industry and emerging wine farms. SAB, in conjunction with the Restaurant Association of SA, has created a social media campaign with adverts listing the names of hundreds of restaurants that are struggling to keep their doors open. SAB spokesperson Zoleka Lisa said: “Protecting lives and livelihoods are equally important and our industry continues to be marginalised. We are the only industry in the country today that is not operational. This is damaging to employees and families reliant on the sector to earn a living. Lifting the ban and protecting jobs are even more urgent after the looting highlighted that SA needs practical solutions to the unemployment and poverty crisis”. Two urgent court cases have been brought challenging the latest ban. On Thursday, SAB lost its urgent case at the High Court in Cape Town. Vinpro, a wine industry body, argued on Wednesday that provincial authorities were better placed and constitutionally authorised to enact and lift bans when needed. The Beer Association of SA (Basa) estimates that the latest four-week ban has put 9,206 jobs in the alcohol industry at risk. This follows the three previous bans, which resulted in more than 7,400 jobs lost in the beer industry alone. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Karl Gernetzky and Katharine Child at BusinessLive (paywall access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Restaurant owners fume at Ters failures GroundUp reports that as applications under the Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (Ters) reopened on 19 July for selected industries, members of the Restaurant Association of SA (Rasa) voiced their frustrations at a digital meeting with the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). Ters is open for workers who have not been able to work from 16 March 2021 due to restrictions, including those in the restaurant industry. Applications for the period from 16 March to 25 July are now being accepted, with payments to begin from 26 July. At Monday’s virtual meeting, which had over 450 participants, restaurant owners said that they had struggled with the Ters system. Some restaurants had applications on appeal, which meant they could not apply in respect of the current phase. Others reported that the Ters online portal indicated that they had submitted successfully, whereas they have received no payment since last year. Many said that they had faced difficulties claiming for immigrant employees. Rasa spokesperson Wendy Alberts claimed that some restaurant owners were still waiting for Ters payments outstanding since the initial lockdown. Restaurant owner Syd Catton said his experience with Ters was one of “dismal failure”. On 16 July, Department of Employment and Labour spokesperson Makhosonke Buthelezi told GroundUp: “What we have experienced with most employers in this sector is that most employees are not declared with the UIF, and the biggest challenge is that the majority are foreign nationals whose identification fail verification both with Home Affairs and SARS. In such instances, we are unable to pay. If, however, the bank details and IDs are positively verified payments are processed. It is therefore very important that employers provide accurate and correct details of their employers to the fund to prevent delays in payments.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tariro Washinyira at GroundUp Hawks arrest chartered accountant for UIF Ters fraud of almost R900,000 Fin24 reports that a chartered accountant has been arrested for fraud, theft and money laundering related to the Unemployment Insurance Fund’s (UIF’s) Temporary Employer-Employee Relief Scheme (Ters). Mark Vorster was released on R10,000 bail by the East London Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, following allegations that he made fraudulent claims for his and other companies to the value of more than R884,000. Vorster is set to appear in the Pretoria Specialised Crime Court next Thursday. A statement from the Hawks said a team in Pretoria investigated and executed Vorster's arrest, seizing a laptop and a cellphone as part of an ongoing investigation. Discrepancies were discovered by a bank official who also managed to recover half of the money from the accused's bank account, the statement advised. The reintroduction of the Ters scheme has come with concerns of fraudulent behaviour in the claims process. Government has indicated its intention to pay benefits directly to employees instead of paying through employers, so as to bypass "unscrupulous employers". Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Khulekani Magubane at Fin24
Two men in East London court for allegedly raping a female e-hailing cab driver News24 reports that two men appeared in the East London Magistrate's Court on Thursday for allegedly raping a Bolt cab driver in March 2021. The two, aged 20 and 29, allegedly forced the female driver into their flat and raped her after she had ferried them to their destination. According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the two allegedly requested a Bolt cab in the early hours of 5 March. A female driver responded and went to pick them up in Cambridge. Upon arrival at the destination, an argument ensued over the payment for the trip. NPA spokesperson Anelisa Ngcakani indicated: “The accused then allegedly threatened the Bolt driver and ordered her to go with them inside their flat. It is alleged that King and Mdleleni raped her once they were inside the flat.” The two were arrested on the same day. One accused was granted bail of R1,000 on 8 March, while the other abandoned his bail application. They will appear in court again on 29 July. Read the original of the short report in the above regard by Malibongwe Dayimani at News24
State can’t afford to borrow R70bn to increase public servants’ salaries in accordance with 2018 deal, Senzo Mchunu tells ConCourt Independent Media reports Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) Minister Senzo Mchunu has warned that the government would have to borrow over R70 billion to comply with the 2018 agreement to increase public servants' salaries that it failed to honour last year. Mchunu filed his written submissions ahead of next month's Constitutional Court (ConCourt) battle between unions representing state employees and the government over the failure to increase their salaries in 2020. The three-year agreement reached at the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) in 2018 would have seen salaries increase by between 4.4% and 5.4% agreed with effect from 1 April 2020. ”If enforcement of clause 3.3 (of the agreement) was ordered, the government would have to borrow in excess of R70bn, just to pay R37.8bn in the 2020/21 period. It would then have to borrow again, or reduce the funding going to other budgets, to fund the cost of clause 3.3 into the future,” reads the submissions filed on Mchunu’s behalf. The R37.8bn referred to by Mchunu is the amount the government would have paid last year had it implemented the PSCBC deal. The unions are challenging a December 2020 court ruling, which declared that the April 2020 wage hike was unlawful as it contravened the Constitution and parts of the Public Service Regulations. Mchunu’s finance counterpart Tito Mboweni has asserted that the three-year deal signed in 2018 imposed a burden of billions of rands on the fiscus and that available funding did not exist then and does not exist currently. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Loyiso Sidimba at Independent Media
Community health workers to wait another year for permanent employment Independent Media reports that thousands of community health workers at the forefront of the fight against Covid-19 may have to wait for another year before being absorbed as the government wants the agreement to consider permanently employing them extended. Labour parties to the Public Health and Social Development Sectoral Bargaining Council (PHSDSBC), namely the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union, the Democratic Nurses Organisation of SA, the Public Servants Association and the Health and Other Services Personnel Trade Union of SA, are considering the government’s offer to extend the deal reached in 2018. In terms of the deal, the unions and the government agreed to “ensure the development of standard operational procedure for the recruitment, selection, appointment, placement, skills development, dispute resolution, occupational health and safety procedures and absorption in the health system for community health workers and subsequent process that may follow in line with policy framework and strategy for ward-based outreach teams”. However, the agreement had a clause making provision for the resolution to be extended for two consecutive terms. The agreement was extended in 2019 and last year and the government wants another 12-months extension to allow parties to conclude outstanding matters. At its special meeting on Monday, the PHSDSBC reminded the parties that the provisions of the clause have not yet been realised. Community health workers are paid a non-service remuneration of R3 500 a month if they have completed matric or have experience and can benefit from recognition of prior learning. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Loyiso Sidimba at Independent Media
Fired Eastern Cape principal ordered to pay R2,000 fine for making pupil retrieve phone from pit latrine News24 reports that the Eastern Cape school principal who was fired for forcing a child to retrieve his cellphone from a pit latrine has been given a light fine. Former Luthuthu Junior Secondary School principal Lubeko Mgandela pleaded guilty in the Tsomo Magistrate's Court to child abuse and was sentenced on Wednesday to 24 months’ imprisonment or a R4,000 fine. Half of the sentence and fine were suspended for five years on condition that he was not convicted of child abuse during the period of suspension. It means that R2,000 is payable and that the other R2,000 becomes payable in the event that Mgandela commits a similar offence within the five-years suspension period. The sentence has sparked outrage in the community. Children's rights activist Petros Majola from the Khula Community Development Project said it was far too light. “We are glad that justice has moved swiftly in this case but we would have loved to see a heftier fine because I am sure this R2,000 was not a problem at all for this man,” Majola commented: The Department of Education fired Mgandela in June after the conclusion of a disciplinary hearing in connection with the incident. The dismissal followed a precautionary suspension. The State alleged in the case that on 1 March Mgandela used a rope to lower an 11-year-old pupil into the staff pit latrine to recover his cellphone. The device fell into the pit toilet while he was using it. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Malibongwe Dayimani at News24. Lees ook, Hoof beboet wat leerder in puttoilet afsak, by Maroela Media
Government considers closing certain routes and ranks amid Western Cape taxi wars, which claimed at least six lives in past week BL Premium reports that the government is considering drastic measures including closing down certain public transport routes and ranks in the Western Cape as it battles to quell deadly violence between two rival taxi associations in the province. The violence has claimed at least six lives in the past week, while a five-month-old baby was injured. Nearly 60% of residents in the Western Cape use public transport including taxis, buses, and trains, to get to and from work and for various other trips. At the heart of the latest unrest is a dispute between the Cape Amalgamated Taxi Association and the Cape Organisation for the Democratic Taxi Association over lucrative routes in and around the Cape metro. The clashes have left many commuters stranded, which has affected their incomes and the productivity of many businesses in the province. The unrest has also hampered the government’s vaccination drive as many residents have been unable to get to vaccination sites. “This conflict and senseless killing continues to wreak havoc and place the lives of innocent people in harm’s way, which includes taxi owners, drivers, commuters and community members alike,” transport minister Fikile Mbalula said on Thursday. He reported that mediation talks between the taxi associations facilitated by national and provincial authorities had not yielded any positive results and thus drastic measures could be considered including closing down routes to protect lives. In the event of such provisions being invoked, authorities will afford affected parties the opportunity to make representations on the proposed measures. “In the event the extraordinary measures are invoked, consideration must be given to the deployment of alternative transport for the communities and security thereof,” Mbalula indicated. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bekezela Phakathi at BusinessLive (paywall access only) Taxi violence disrupts health services in Cape Town Cape Argus reports that the ongoing taxi violence has resulted in the disruption of services at health facilities in some Cape Town areas. The Nyanga Clinic reopened on Wednesday after it was closed on Tuesday, while the Gugulethu Community Health Clinic was operating on a reduced staff complement. Equal Rights Forum spokesperson in Nyanga, Noluthando Jack said residents received notifications cancelling appointments for the collection of their medication. Gugulethu Development Forum’s Nowi Mdayi advised that the clinic was now operating for eight hours with only four nurses. She said midwife obstetric units would continue as a 24-hour service, while trauma patients were referred to Heideveld. “Our professional nurses and doctors do not reside in our area and can’t travel. As a result, people were not able to honour their appointments, and it was only today that the Kwezi vaccination station opened, and this had caused a backlog,” she indicated. Department of Health spokesperson Mark van der Heever confirmed that the recent disruptions to public transport caused by taxi violence meant that some health workers in the city could not get to work or got to work late. He said this had affected the department’s ability to provide healthcare services to communities and meant that health services could not be maintained in several areas after-hours. “On Tuesday, our vaccination teams were also affected by this, coupled with connectivity issues with EVDS, which saw 27 000 vaccines administered, which is 3,000 less than our target of 30 000 a day,” Van der Heever reported. He said managers were monitoring the available staffing capacity and trying their best to maintain services with the limited staff on-site, and were adjusting work schedules. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Mthuthuzeli Ntseku at Cape Argus Golden Arrow reinstates most of its bus service in Cape Town Metro EWN reports that Golden Arrow Bus Service has reinstated most of its transport services in the Cape Town Metro. The company earlier this week temporarily halted services on routes in areas plagued by taxi violence. One of its drivers was shot in the face on the N2 highway on Monday. Spokesperson Bronwen Dyke-Beyer advised that they were working with law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of staff and commuters. She said that the injured driver was recovering well and commented further as follows: "We believe that this is going to continue to make a big difference and make our drivers and passengers feel a lot safer. We're operating at about 80% this morning and we're hoping that this will continue to improve as the day progresses. We are very grateful to Premier Alan Winde and MEC Daylin Mitchell as well as SAPS and the city's law enforcement team for the assistance that we have received so far. As for our driver who was injured, we have been able to talk to him on the phone - he is stable and is recovering." Read the original of the short report in the above regard by Kaylynn Palm at EWN Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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