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 Thursday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
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New workplace Covid-19 rules published, to come into effect when state of disaster ends BusinessLive reports that Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) Minister Thulas Nxesi has published new rules for managing Covid-19 in the workplace that will come into effect when the national state of disaster is lifted. The development is an important part of the government’s efforts to ensure there is a coherent legislative framework in place to help manage the coronavirus pandemic when it ends the national state of disaster, brought into effect two years ago. The government is under growing pressure to end the state of disaster. Earlier this week the state of disaster was extended until 15 April. The Code of Practice for Managing Exposure to Sars-CoV-2 in the Workplace 2022 was published by Nxesi in the Government Gazette on Tuesday. It takes the rights and obligations of employers and employees set out in rules that were brought into effect by Nxesi in terms of regulations to the Disaster Act and makes them rights and obligations under the Labour Relations Act instead. However, the new code goes a step further, strengthening the rights of employers to request the vaccination status of employees, and limiting the grounds employees can use to refuse to get vaccinated to medical conditions. Jacqui Reed, senior associate at Herbert Smith Freehills, commented: “These regulations are trying to deal with the arguments that have come up in recent CCMA cases” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive Confusion and inconsistencies in proposed new Covid-19 health regulations, say experts BL Premium reports that as the government races to devise new measures for managing the coronavirus pandemic in order to lift the national state of disaster, health minister Joe Phaahla has released a slew of proposed changes to current health regulations, some of which have left experts baffled. At the same time, labour & employment minister Thulas Nxesi published a new code of conduct for managing Covid-19 in the workplace. The health minister’s proposed regulatory changes cover rules for the size of gatherings, social distancing, quarantine and isolation, funerals, travel in and out of SA, and the handling of dead bodies. They are contained in amendments to three sets of regulations to the National Health Act and amendments to regulations to the International Health Regulations Act, published in the Government Gazette on 15 March. The public has 30 days to comment. According to the health department, the changes are intended to provide the government with the tools to manage Covid-19 and other notifiable diseases, but independent sources say it is unclear how restrictions will be tightened or loosened, and which aspects are specific to Covid-19. They also highlighted inconsistencies in the proposed changes to the regulations relating to the surveillance and control of notifiable medical conditions, which limit funerals to 100 people but permit indoor gatherings of up to 1,000 people. The government has yet to publish regulations to the Social Assistance Act, which are required to ensure the continuation of the R350 social relief of distress grant. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive (subscriber access only) Under new draft rules, face masks will not go away with the end of the state of disaster Business Insider SA reports that health minister Joe Phaahla is of the view that face masks should outlive the national state of disaster on coronavirus, and possibly stick around for a long time yet. Under new draft rules which he published this week, face masks would remain mandatory in three broad areas, namely when "in a gathering in an indoor public place", when using “any form of public transport", and to "enter a public premises". Companies would be required to provide face masks to employees. Notably absent from the list is any outdoor public space. The new draft rules are due to replace the Covid-19 rules that draw their power from the national state of disaster, now in place for two years. The new rules will instead operate under legislation that deals with notifiable diseases, and which gives the government the power to manage such diseases. The new mask mandate could be applied to any notifiable disease that spreads via the air. The draft rules will be open to public comment until mid-April. The department of health said on Thursday it would not require Parliament to sign off on the rules, as they fell within powers Parliament had already granted to the minister of health to deal with serious diseases. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Business Insider SA Labour Court rules in favour of employer in mandatory workplace vaccination case The Citizen reports that the Labour Court gave its first verdict on vaccination in the workplace on Monday when it found in favour of an employer that restricted access to the workplace to employees who were not vaccinated and did not submit a negative Covid test. Trade union Solidarity, acting on behalf of Johetta Van Rensburg, launched an urgent application in the Labour Court to challenge the admission policy of Ernest Lowe, a division of Hudago Trading, after Van Rensburg was refused entry when she arrived at work on 4 January this year. Van Rensburg indicated that she was not willing to be vaccinated even before Ernest Lowe finalised its policy restricting access to its workplace to curb the spread of Covid-19, but said she was willing to submit a weekly Covid-19 test if it was at the employer’s expense. Ernest Lowe informed her that it would not pay for the test and would therefore not allow her onto its premises and that the no-work-no-pay principle would apply. Van Rensburg argued that the admission policy at Ernest Lowe breached several provisions of her contract of employment. But, the Labour Court found that Van Rensburg could not identify a specific term of her employment contract that was breached because of or by the adoption of the admission policy and that no provision of her contract of employment was unilaterally changed by the admission policy either. Therefore, no provisions needed to be restored as Van Rensburg’s contract was not changed or breached. The Labour Court also found that Van Rensburg failed to plead and demonstrate how the admission policy amounted to a mandatory vaccination policy, as the admissions policy did not refuse unvaccinated employees entry to the work premises. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ina Opperman at The Citizen
Unlawful strike hampers services in Tshwane Maroela Media reports that on Wednesday the Tshawne metro experienced a second day of service disruptions brought about by an unlawful strike. The action was driven by a number of employees in the metro demanding salary increases. The city last year decided not to implement salary hikes in terms of an agreement with unions and the SA Local Government Association. It cited financial constraints. According to Lindela Mashigo, spokesperson for the council, members of the metro police and the SAPS were deployed on Wednesday morning in an effort to bring the unruly protestors under control. Tshwane claims that the unlawful strike is being carried out by members of the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu), but a letter has apparently been sent by the union to the acting city manager, Mmaseabata Mutlaneng, denying its involvement in the strike. The city has issued an ultimatum to the strikers to return to work. “Striking employees are reminded that the city has obtained a final Labour Court interdict that prohibits Samwu members from embarking on a strike regarding the issues that led to the court interdict,” Mutlaneng warned. Lees, Onwettige staking ontwrig dienste in Tshwane, by Maroela Media. Read too, Tshwane workers block Centurion roads with rubble, litter, at Pretoria News
Unisa meets with Nehawu after disgruntled workers disrupt graduation ceremony EWN reports that the University of SA (Unisa) advised on Wednesday that a meeting between its management and the National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union (Nehawu) had taken place after disgruntled workers affiliated to the union disrupted a graduation ceremony on Tuesday. The meeting discussed the issues in dispute that had led to the disruption, as well as the rules of engagement when employees exercised their right to protest, but there was still no final outcome. Unisa apologised to affected graduands and staff after it was forced to cancel the ceremony, which was supposed to have taken place on Tuesday night. Two other ceremony set for Wednesday were also postponed. Spokesperson Victor Dlamini said they were working on alternative arrangements, but the events remained postponed until further notice. Some unhappy students, who had travelled from different provinces, took to social media to lament the inconvenience. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at EWN. Read too, Unisa postpones graduations after Nehawu members disrupt ceremony, at News24 Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold wage strike continues as parties dig in heels BL Premium reports that as the industrial action at Sibanye-Stillwater’s gold operation continues, the two big unions striking for higher wages say they are in it for the long haul. It remains to be seen who will blink first: Sibanye management or leaders of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu). The unions said their members would continue to down tools to “shake up” Sibanye’s gold operations, while the company has said it would continue implementing a lockout on striking workers until the two unions accepted its revised wage offer. On Monday, Sibanye said it had received an “unconditional acceptance” of its final wage offer from Solidarity and Uasa, which was made to the coalition of unions, including NUM and Amcu, on 4 February. It said members of Solidarity and Uasa would no longer be locked out of the workplace. The revised wage offer implies surface and underground workers getting a R700 monthly pay rise and a R100 increase in the living-out allowance each year for three years, and a 5% pay increase for so-called ‘artisans, miners and officials’ over the course of the multiyear agreement. The four unions had been negotiating with the company for nearly a year, demanding an increase of R1,000 a month, or 6%, plus a R100 increase in the living-out allowance, taking their wage demand to R1,100 each year for three years. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only) Platinum workers eye windfall increases as wage talks near Bloomberg reports that the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), which is SA’s biggest platinum mining union, will next week start submitting wage demands to PGM (platinum group metals) producers as workers push for a share of the windfall profits brought by rallying metal prices. Amcu’s Jimmy Gama indicated that negotiations for three-year wage deals with producers, including Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), Sibanye-Stillwater and Impala Platinum (Implats), were expected to start in the first week of April. He declined to disclose the union’s demands, but did comment as follows: “The platinum companies made huge profits in 2021 and they continue doing so”. PGM producers announced record dividends after the price of palladium and rhodium — produced alongside platinum in SA — rallied. Still, the companies warned that a wage settlement with about 163 000 workers must not threaten the long-term viability of a key export industry. Union demands must be balanced “through future PGMs commodity price cycles and to avoid wage increases which could place many jobs at risk,” said an Amplats spokeswoman. Amcu, which in 2014 led the longest ever platinum mining strike in SA, plans to negotiate jointly with the rival National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), Gama said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Felix Njini at Moneyweb
Saftu seeks to suspend Zwelinzima Vavi over alleged administrative, finance policy breaches EWN reports that the SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) has served its general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi with a letter of intention to place him on precautionary suspension. Vavi has until close of business on Thursday to give reasons why he should not be suspended pending an investigation into various alleged transgressions, including breach of the union’s administration and finance policy. Vavi confirmed that he was aware of the letter and said he was currently formulating a response. In the letter, Saftu’s president, Mac Chavalala, indicated that at a meeting on Tuesday, the union’s national office bearers had noted with great concern a number of transgressions on Vavi’s part which were tantamount to acts of misconduct and misbehaviour. Chavalala said that these warranted an investigation and possible disciplinary action. The letter states that the probe will, among other matters, be into alleged violations of Saftu’s constitution and undermining constitutional and structural decisions and resolutions. Read the original of the report in the above regard by Masechaba Sefularo at EWN. Read too, Vavi says he will respond to Saftu over intention to suspend him, at EWN
Petrol price looks set to hit R24 a litre from April BL Premium reports that South Africans can expect record fuel price increases in April, which will be yet another blow to already embattled consumers. Commenting on mid-month fuel data released by the Central Energy Fund (CEF), the Automobile Association (AA) projects fuel prices of around R24/l for petrol and R23.60 for diesel. Based on the current data, 95 octane petrol is set to increase by R2.15/l, 93 octane is expected to climb by R2.07/l, diesel by between R2.94/l and R3.08/l and illuminating paraffin by R2.51/l. “If realised at month end, these will be the biggest increases to fuel prices in SA’s history and will, undoubtedly, have major ramifications for all consumers and the economy in general. We must note, though, that this is the mid-month outlook, and oil prices are, for the moment, see-sawing significantly so there may yet be some relief before the official adjustment by the department of mineral resources and energy is made going into April,” the AA indicated. Fuel prices hit record highs in March, with petrol costing more than R21 a litre for the first time. The main driver behind the increases is the movement in international oil prices. The government is considering measures to shield consumers from potentially dramatic price hikes. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Lees ook, Grootste brandstofprysstyging nóg verwag, by Maroela Media
Cricket SA finally names new permanent CEO BusinessLive reports that Cricket SA ended its long search for a new CEO by announcing on Wednesday that Pholetsi Moseki, who had been acting in the position, would be the organisation’s new boss. Cricket SA board chair Lawson Naidoo said: “Pholetsi has displayed extraordinary dedication and commitment since he joined the Cricket SA family in 2019. He has been the key link in the leadership chain at Cricket SA, especially during challenging periods. He has played a key role in getting the organisation moving in the right direction.” Moseki joined Cricket SA as chief finance officer in 2019 and stepped up to the CEO role on an acting basis in December 2020. Cricket SA employed three acting CEOs since Thabang Moroe was suspended in December 2019. Jacques Faul and Kugandrie Govender occupied the role before Moseki’s appointment. Naidoo advised that Moseki’s performance would be benchmarked against set targets and key performance indicators. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tiisetso Malepa at BusinessLive
Tshwane rejects bargaining council ruling and appeals against reinstatement of 89 contract workers The Citizen reports that the former Capacity workers who were due to start working this week after the local government bargaining council ruled they should be reinstated were left disappointed when the City of Tshwane rejected the ruling and went to court. Last week, the former workers were delighted when the city was ordered to reappoint and reimbursed them after they were allegedly unlawfully let go in 2020 when their contracts expired and the city refused to reinstate them. “The City of Tshwane has begun a process to review the Bargaining Council’s ruling to reinstate the 89 so-called capacity workers at the Labour Court in Johannesburg, as we believe that a different court would most likely arrive at a different outcome,” the city indicated. Tshwane said it strenuously disagreed with the ruling and so had decided to take the bargaining council’s ruling to court. The city also said the former contract workers could not return to work until the Labour Court had fully ventilated the matter. According to the city, it employed 627 workers to assist with waste management on a fixed 12-month contract from November 2019 until 31 October 2020. “Upon expiry of their contract, 89 of those workers demanded to be permanently absorbed as city employees. When the city insisted that they cannot be absorbed into the organisational structure as their contracts had expired, they took the matter to the Bargaining Council on the grounds of unfair dismissal.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Marizka Coetzer at The Citizen
Limpopo prosecutor, his wife and 14 'ghost workers' arrested over R900,000 tender scam News24 reports that a Limpopo prosecutor, a site manager believed to be his wife, an administrator and 14 ghost workers were scheduled to appear in the Makhado Magistrate's Court on Wednesday for alleged corruption. They were arrested by the Hawks' Serious Corruption Investigation team on Tuesday and Wednesday morning. Captain Matimba Maluleke of the Limpopo Hawks said allegations were that between 2016 and 2021 an NPO called Thembalethu was awarded a tender by the Department of Cooperative Governance, Human Settlement, and Traditional Affairs to clean the Makhado area. The site manager and the administrator then allegedly recruited their friends and relatives as the employees of the Community Workers Programme (CWP). Investigations revealed that the workers never set foot in the Makhado area to do the work, but they were paid R2,540 each every month. "Further investigation also revealed that after the money was paid into the ghost workers' bank accounts, they would request them to pay back R1 500 through various means," Maluleke added. The Vuwani-based prosecutor, who is said to be the husband of the site manager, was allegedly one of the recipients of the money paid back by the ghost workers. The department suffered a loss of more than R900,000 due to these illegal activities. A search for outstanding ghost workers is under way. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Canny Maphanga at News24 Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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