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 Wednesday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
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Unemployment rate rose to 35.3% in 2021’s fourth quarter, with 7.9m unemployed BL Premium reports that the rate of unemployment in SA, which is among the highest in the world, continued to accelerate in the fourth quarter of 2021, increasing by 0.4 of a percentage point from 34.9% in the third quarter to 35.3%. The Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) results for the fourth quarter, released by statistician-general Risenga Maluleke on Tuesday, showed that the number of unemployed people increased by 278,000 to 7.9-million in the last quarter of 2021, from 7.6-million in the previous quarter. The number of employed people increased by 262,000 to 14.5-million during the period under review, from 14.3-million in the third quarter. The number of discouraged job seekers decreased by 56,000 to 3.8-million, while the number of the “not economically active population” decreased by 397,000 to 17.4-million. Maluleke advised that the unemployment rate according to the expanded definition of unemployment decreased by 0.4 of a percentage point to 46.2% in the fourth quarter. The formal sector, which accounts for 67.2% of total employment in the country, created 143,000 jobs between the third and fourth quarters of 2021, while the informal sector shed 48,000 jobs during the period. The manufacturing sector, one of the mainstays of the economy, lost 85,000 jobs during the period, followed by the construction industry which shed 25,000 jobs. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Lees ook, Meer mense as ooit in SA nou werkloos, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
City of Cape Town 'shocked' after official shot and killed, colleague wounded on Monday EWN reports that a City of Cape Town staff member has been shot and killed and another wounded. The pair were attacked at the municipal wastewater treatment facility in Athlone on Monday afternoon. The city's Zahid Badroodien was shocked, adding the attack had traumatised colleagues. “The circumstances of the killing are under investigation by the appropriate services. The city will support the police in order to get to the bottom of this killing and also support the family in whichever way through these difficult circumstances,” he indicated. Read the original of the short report in the above regard by Regan Thaw at EWN
SA to exit the national state of disaster soon, says Dlamini-Zuma TimesLive reports that Cabinet met on Monday night and took a decision that SA must move towards ending the national state of disaster soon, with regulations to be put in place to govern the transition period. This was announced by co-operative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma on Tuesday. She said the proposed new regulations would be gazetted on Tuesday evening and the public would have 48 hours to comment. Based on the response and analysis of the comments, President Cyril Ramaphosa would make an announcement some time next week about when the national state of disaster would end, Dlamini-Zuma indicated. Ramaphosa in his address to the nation last week said it was the desire of government to return, as much as possible, to normality but in a manner that recognised the changing nature of the Covid-19 pandemic. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ernest Mabuza at TimesLive Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Godongwana blames 'wrong' policies which chose Eskom over frontline departments for wage bill stalemate Fin24 reports that according to Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, National Treasury is committed to the process of collective bargaining, but it finds itself between a rock and a hard place and has to stick to its strategy of arresting runaway debt, even in the face of rising vacancies in areas like healthcare and education. Speaking at the public service summit on Monday, Godongwana said while 2021 GDP numbers came out better than the government initially expected, and labour might view this as a justification for better wage increases, a lot of the factors that drove the country's economic recovery were likely to reverse. For instance, SA Reserve Bank interest rate hikes will begin to affect consumption expenditure that is driven by credit. Furthermore, Russia-Ukraine war is already driving global inflation to new heights. So, the government had to carefully balance its expenditure on many competing priorities, including the rising cost of servicing its debt, while the level of economic growth was not guaranteed. It also has to honour the promised relief to consumers through the freezing of certain taxes and the review of the fuel price formula. So the government could not borrow more in order to compensate public servants. Godongwana added that, while he was cautious in his management of the public wage bill, he was "a fan" of bulking up frontline departments. Currently, there were 12.7% unfilled vacancies in public services, mostly in healthcare and education. Godongwana said this was partly a result of the government's decisions to redirect money from frontline services to bail out Eskom. He added in the 14 years of power outages in SA, it had focused on "fixing Eskom" instead of investing to get more electricity into the grid. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Londiwe Buthelezi at Fin24. Read too, Fuel tax should be put on hold, government told, at BusinessLive
Operation Dudula's anti-migrant march targets factories in Pretoria EWN reports that nearly 300 people marched on factories in Rosslyn near Pretoria for the launch of anti-migrant group Operation Dudula in the capital city on Tuesday. They demanded that businesses based in the automotive hub prioritise the employment of South Africans over foreign nationals. The demonstration came a day after their leader, Nhlanhla Lux Mohlauli, was released on bail after he was arrested last week for allegedly raiding the home of a suspected drug dealer. Demonstrators were bussed in from Atteridgeville, Mabopane and surrounding areas. They made their first stop at metal factory Praga where the deputy chairperson Dan Radebe delivered a memorandum of demands. “They must replace those foreigners with South Africans with immediate effect, because what they are doing is a crime,” he claimed. Praga HR Manager Refilwe Ngwetjana denied the group’s claim that the business employed 50% foreign nationals. “Out of the 800 employees, I only have 8 who are foreigners, which are in the country legally,” Ngwetjana advised. Praga has 14 days to respond to the demands. Read the original of the report in the above regard by Masechaba Sefularo at EWN DA warns that ‘criminal’ Operation Dudula could lead to repeat of unrest TimesLive reports that the Democratic Alliance (DA) on Tuesday labelled the actions of Operation Dudula as criminal and xenophobic. In doing so, the DA joined the EFF, ANC Veterans League and President Cyril Ramaphosa in expressing disapproval of the activities of the movement led by Nhlanhla “Lux” Dlamini, who is out on bail after being charged with housebreaking and malicious damage to property. He was arrested on Thursday after Victor Ramerafe, accompanied by the EFF, opened a case against him at the Dobsonville police station on Wednesday. Ramerafe’s home was ransacked last week by Operation Dudula members claiming to have received information that he was selling drugs from the premises. No drugs were found in a raid on the premises. Operation Dudula, which was announced in June 2021, has mushroomed in various parts of the country, with its main objective being to root out illegal immigrants. DA home affairs spokesperson Angel Khanyile said they condemned the “xenophobic rhetoric and subsequent illegality against foreigners in SA that seem part … of Operation Dudula” and added that, while its mission might be to protect communities, it cannot be “at the expense of foreign nationals who call SA home”. Khanyile commented: “The DA understands the frustration faced by marginalised communities, but we do not believe that the appropriate course of action is xenophobia and violence.” The official opposition believes the actions of Dudula will lead to the violence and unrest similar to that in July 2021 after the incarceration of former president Jacob Zuma. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lwazi Hlangu at BusinessLive Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Gold output grinds to halt at Sibanye-Stillwater as wage strike by NUM and Amcu enters third week BL Premium reports that the long pay strike by the two largest unions at Sibanye-Stillwater, one of the world’s leading producers of precious metals, may mean the group misses out on a commodity price boom as gold production has ground to a halt. The strike enters its third week on Wednesday. The group’s gold mines, which account for 7% of group profit and employ about 31,000 workers, have been closed since 9 March when members of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Workers (Amcu) and the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) downed tools to demand above-inflation increases. The group responded with a lockout and a policy of no work, no pay since 10 March, a decision that has seen workers lose more than R400m in pay. There has been no production since. A long strike could deprive Sibanye of an opportunity to take advantage of a gold price that jumped from a low of $1,782 at the beginning of 2022 to $2,070, the highest since August 2020. Workers affiliated to the two smaller unions, Solidarity and Uasa are not participating in the strike and have not been locked out. They accepted Sibanye’s final wage offer that resulted in surface and underground workers getting a R700 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. Amcu’s Jimmy Gama said: “The demands are still there, no changes until the employer responds to them.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
Prasa to open criminal cases against those implicated in scam involving 3,000 ghost employees TimesLive reports that the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) is looking to open criminal cases regarding the 3,000 “ghost employees” it has uncovered in its system. News of the ghost workers broke last week when transport minister Fikile Mbalula addressed parliament's standing committee on public accounts (Scopa). He told the committee the ghost workers were uncovered in the system during the Operation Ziveze investigation and the salaries were stopped in December last year. Addressing Scopa on Tuesday, Prasa board chairperson Leonard Ramatlakane told MPs the entity was at phase 2 of its investigation and would look at opening criminal charges. “The second phase would require forensics and that would require police to get involved because it's critical to find out where the money went,” said Ramatlakane. He told the committee of plans to recover the millions paid, as recommended by the auditor-general. Acting group CEO David Mphelo told the committee they were investigating whether the ghost workers were South Africans and said they had already identified 62 foreign nationals, some of whom had fraudulent identities and expired permits. He said Prasa would hand over the names of those who loaded the names of the ghost employees to the police to be charged for fraud and identity theft. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Aphiwe Deklerk at TimesLive Couple and accomplice nabbed for ghost employees’ salary payout of almost R2.3m IOL reports that the Pretoria Specialised Commercial Crimes Court on Tuesday released a couple and an accomplice on bail of R5,000 each after they were accused of defrauding a labour broking company of almost R2.3 million. Police said that between 2017 and December 2020, the alleged fraudster, Fancola Malekana, a former contract manager at the Benoni based labour brokerage Workforce, altered the banking details of former clients’ employees and transferred the monthly salaries. Captain Ndivhuwo Mulamu said further investigations revealed that Malekana equally shared the fraudulent proceeds with his co-accused, Mlungisi Sakala, who was employed by Workforce's client National Rubber Matmin as a human resource manager during the period. “Workforce conducted an internal headcount and discovered a number of employees who had since resigned but were still receiving monthly payments. The company suffered a loss of approximately R2.3 million within three years on ghost employees’ salaries,” Mulamu advised. She added that further investigations revealed that more ghost employees were allegedly created and their salaries were reportedly transferred into the account of Sakala’s wife, Charlotte Sakala. The case was postponed to 29 April. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Brenda Masilela at IOL
Absa chooses insider Arrie Rautenbach as its fourth CEO in three years BL Premium reports that Absa has its fourth boss in three years, promoting Arrie Rautenbach, head of its retail and business bank, to the CEO role and ending a leadership vacuum that lasted 11 months after the abrupt departure of Daniel Mminele. Tuesday’s appointment of Rautenbach comes as the group pushes to regain market share in key divisions in a fiercely competitive industry looking for new streams of income beyond basic financial services. This appointment is said to underline Absa’s determination to advance its 2018 strategy to grow its business substantially elsewhere in Africa, win back market share at home and expand the corporate and investment banking division. The strategy was mapped out by a team involving Rautenbach and had to be tweaked in the wake of the pandemic. But handing the job to a 25-year veteran of the company may be seen as a setback to transformation. Mminele was the first black executive to lead Absa. Wendy Lucas-Bull, who will step down as chair at the end of the month, said SA’s fourth-biggest lender by market value was committed to transformation. Rautenbach, who becomes the first internally appointed CEO since 2006, has risen through the ranks since joining Absa in 1997. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Andries Mahlangu at BusinessLive (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Solidarity opens corruption case against 21 state capture suspects EWN reports that trade union Solidarity on Tuesday opened a criminal case against twenty-one state capture suspects, including former president Jacob Zuma and the former South African Airways chairperson Dudu Myeni. The charges include corruption, theft, fraud and mismanaging state funds. Former head of Transnet and Eskom Brian Molefe, former chairperson of Denel Daniel Mantsha, as well as the former chief executive of Denel Zwelakhe Ntshepe, were also included. Solidarity said these charges were brought following reports and recommendations by the Zondo commission. The union said it wanted the National Prosecuting Authority to begin prosecutions immediately. Read the original of the short report in the above regard at EWN. Read Solidarity’s press statement regarding the above at Solidarity News
Prasa faces complete collapse and requires more state funding, warns Transport Minister BL Premium reports that the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) is facing collapse, with its expenses far outstripping its revenue. This as it battles to recover from the Covid-19 national lockdowns and the theft and damage of infrastructure that have derailed its operations. The state-owned rail operator is also reeling from a huge salary bill, made worse by a large list of ghost workers uncovered recently. “Prasa is in a dire financial position as it is not generating sufficient revenue to cover its operating costs ... As a consequence, Prasa has become dependent on the government subsidy in the form of operational and capital grants,” transport minister Fikile Mbalula told parliament’s standing committee on public accounts (Scopa). He was leading a Prasa delegation on Tuesday to discuss the parastatal’s annual report for the year ending March 2021. Prasa, which is supposed to provide rail services that are crucial for productivity and economic growth, recorded an almost R2bn loss in the financial year ending March 2021. Covid-19 restricted travel while vandalism of its infrastructure further whacked its finances. The company’s woes are likely to have been worsened by the 3,000 imaginary workers — nearly 20% of the workforce — who were illegally drawing salaries until as recently as December, when Prasa moved to stop the disbursements. Mbalula suggested that Prasa’s financial woes meant it would depend more on the government to stay afloat. DA MP Benedicta van Minnen said Prasa had declined so badly that the majority of working-class South Africans who used the affordable service for transport have had to turn to more expensive modes of transport, usually in the private sphere. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bekezela Phakathi at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
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