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 roundup of weekend news, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related stories that appeared since
Friday, 2 December 2022.
|
Calls by organised labour to place UIF under administration Business Report writes that organised labour has been lashing out at the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL), calling its Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) “a slush fund for corrupt elements” inside and outside the state. Last month, Cosatu called on the government to urgently deal with the allegations of serious corruption and wasteful expenditure at the social security fund. Recent media reports have highlighted possible inflated prices, open corruption, and dubious courses costing millions of rand, which Cosatu said it found “deeply alarming”. Cosatu claimed that the government was unconcerned and unresponsive to UIF issues because it did not even contribute to the fund, which also called into question its legitimacy to be a caretaker of workers’ funds. The federation has now called on the president to put the UIF under administration with certain conditions to protect the institution against further looting. According to Jan Mahlangu, retirement funds co-ordinator and member of the UIF board, civil servants were meant to be contributing to the fund, ever since the UIF Act was amended in 2017 to allow them to claim from the fund too, but the National Treasury was pushing back on complying with that legislation. In November, the Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) demanded an explanation on why the fund had failed to table its 2020/21 and 2022 annual reports. Theuns du Buisson, an economic researcher at trade union Solidarity, noted that “nothing more can be done until the annual reports are presented. We should be at the point of charging the people responsible on this matter, but you need the latest information to initiate a formal process.” He said the union was compiling a list of all labour-related annual reports that had passed their due date, including from the Government Employee Pension Fund (GEPF) and the Compensation Fund, and would take the matter further in January if the UIF had not presented its case by then. Solidarity has requested more information from the UIF on numerous occasions, but has not received any feedback as yet. Du Buisson also said that Solidarity agreed with the Cosatu notion on the matter of accountability and the claims process. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ruan Jooste at Business Report
Domestic workers urge Ramaphosa to sign compensation amendment bill into law GroundUp reports that the feeling expressed by several domestic workers at a dialogue for workers, unions and government representatives on matters affecting domestic workers, held on Wednesday, was that no one cared about them. The dialogue was given the title, “Two Years after Mahlangu”, referring to the case of Mahlangu and Another v Minister of Labour and Others. In its ruling on the case in November 2020, the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) declared invalid a section of the Compensation for Occupation Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA). The section had effectively excluded domestic workers employed in private households from claiming compensation for workplace injuries. The court order was made retrospective, allowing claims to be lodged by domestic workers (and dependants) who had experienced work-related injuries, diseases or death from 27 April 1994 onwards. Parliament sent the COIDA Amendment Bill to the President for assent in September 2022. Pinky Mashiane of the United Domestic Workers of SA (UDWOSA) urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to sign the COIDA amendment bill into law. According to Keitumetse Moutloatse of Black Women Caucus, in the two years since the Mahlangu victory, fewer than ten claims from domestic workers have been processed. She said the Labour Department needed to do more to educate employers and domestic workers, because many did not know about the ConCourt ruling. She also said that domestic workers might not report their injuries out of fear of intimidation or dismissal. “The [labour] department is making it very difficult for domestic workers to put in claims and benefit from the fund. They say the claim forms must be completed by employers,” she claimed. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Chris Gilili at GroundUp Health experts call for calm amid possibility of new ‘vicious’ Covid-19 strain Saturday Star queries whether SA could experience its most devastating wave of Covid-19 cases in the upcoming months. While scientists warned last week that a more vicious strain of Covid could possibly be on its way, health experts have called for calm. This followed a report by researchers at the Africa Institute for Health Research in Durban, in which they warned that the coronavirus was still able to mutate, despite the current period of calm, and might produce a more vicious version in the future. Scientists issued this warning after they studied the case of a person with Aids who was infected with the “Omicron” corona mutation, which he was unable to get rid of it for six months due to his weak immune system. The study noted that when the virus mutant remains in the patient’s body, for many months, it finds ample time for it to multiply, and then, the possibility of it secreting a new, more fierce mutant increases as a result of the modifications and changes. However, Professor of Vaccinology at Wits University, Shabir Madhi, said there was no reason to believe that the next variant would or would not be more virulent. Madhi said that while sporadic outbreaks of Covid were possible, they were unlikely to translate into large spikes of severe disease or death. “For all intent, the pandemic is very much over, with the extensive infection-induced immunity resulting in an infection fatality rate no higher than would occur after seasonal influenza infection. This has now been the case for the past nine months,” Madhi pointed lut. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sameer Naik, Karishma Dipa & Norman Cloete at Saturday Star Man arrested in connection with murder of police officer in Grassy Park on Thursday EWN reports that a man has been arrested in connection with the murder of a Cape Town police officer. The 26-year-old constable was shot dead when he and his partner approached an armed suspect in Grassy Park on Thursday afternoon. Anti-Gang Unit members tracked the suspect to his hideout in Ravensmead late on Thursday night. Police spokesperson Andre Traut reported: "The 9mm pistol he stole during the altercation with the SAPS members was found in his possession and confiscated. The circumstances surrounding the incident are still being probed by the Hawks' investigators, while the suspect's court appearance is being (scheduled)." Read the original of the short report in the above regard by Lauren Isaacs at EWN Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Ball in government’s court as public sector unions await response over higher pay BL Premium reports that disgruntled public service unions said on Friday they would push ahead with plans for a total shutdown of government services should the employer fail to respond positively to their demands for above-inflation pay increases. This threat came after the unions of labour federations such as Cosatu, Saftu and Fedusa marched recently to the National Treasury in Tshwane in support of demands including a 10% wage increase and the hiring of more public servants. They gave the employer seven days to respond favourably. The unions also demanded an end to austerity measures; permanent employment of community health workers, teacher assistants and reservists; the filling of all vacant posts; and the insourcing of outsourced services, among other things. The deadline to respond was Friday, 2 December. When contacted for comment, Department of Public Service & Administration said: “The government will respond to the unions as per the deadline.” In a statement issued after its central executive committee on Thursday, Cosatu said: “The meeting extended its total support to public service unions who are currently mobilising against their employer following the collapse of wage negotiations in the public service and the unilateral implementation of a 3% wage offer. We reiterate our call on the government to sit down with unions at the PSCBC and engage in good faith to find an amicable solution to avoid labour instability in the public service.” The Public Servants Association’s Reuben Maleka said: “Public servants’ anger has reached an uncontrollable level and they are prepared for indefinite strike action. Workers are prepared to fight fire with fire and bring the country to a standstill.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
Cabinet approves Bill seeking to decriminalise sex services Cape Argus reports that sex workers could soon go about their business without worrying about prosecution as the Cabinet has approved a bill seeking to decriminalise sex services. Presidency Minister Mondli Gungubele announced the proposal to decriminalise sex work when he presented the outcome of last Wednesday’s Cabinet meeting on Thursday. The Cabinet approved the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Bill of 2022. The bill rescinds the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act 32 of 2007 to decriminalise the sale and purchase of adult sexual services. Gungubele said: “The proposals of this bill respond to the list of interventions proposed in Pillar 3 (Protection, Safety and Justice) of the National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, which enjoins the criminal justice system to provide protection, safety and justice for survivors of GBVF, and to effectively hold perpetrators accountable for their actions. Once passed into law, it would, among others, protect sex workers against abuse and exploitation. After approval by the Cabinet, bills go through public participation and the parliamentary processes. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Soyiso Maliti at Cape Argus
Police will have 10,000 new boots on the ground to fight festive season crime TimesLIVE reports that a group of 10,000 newly trained constables will hit the ground from 13 December to fight festive season crime. The constables, who will graduate this week, are part of the #Project10,000 officers initiative. They will be deployed to various stations, units and service points to bolster capacity and enhance police visibility. This comes as the police ministry kick-starts its festive season operations inspection roadshow in Limpopo on Monday. The ministry said the roadshow would aim to ensure police were responding effectively and adequately to crime and all safety and security threats during the festive season. The tour will see police minister Bheki Cele, deputy minister Cassel Mathale and SAPS management led by national police commissioner Gen Fannie Masemola engage communities at shopping malls, taxi ranks, beaches, parks and other public gathering areas and centres of activity. The road show will end in KwaZulu-Natal on 31 December. Read the original of the short report in the above regard at TimesLIVE
Some 95 security guards contracted by a company to protect state facilities claim they weren’t paid for their work City Press reports that businessperson Leeroy Sidambe, who scored two multimillion-rand government contracts, has allegedly been avoiding paying security guards who were hired to guard state facilities. Sidambe, who is a director of the Sakhile Ezweni Group – which offers security services – has allegedly not paid about 95 guards who were involved in a contract with the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC) and the Department of Water and Sanitation. The guards are believed to have protested at the company’s headquarters in Sandton on Wednesday. One of them indicated that they had tried several times to get their outstanding salaries paid, but to no avail. A security guard said: We didn’t get our salary leave payouts and we haven’t been briefed on whether we’ll ever get them, or our provident fund money. When we consulted the company at its head offices, we were confronted by heavily armed bouncers and a reaction unit carry batons. They beat us heavily.” He said he and the other guards had worked for Sakhile Ezweni until their contracts expired in August and October, when the two tenders came to an end. In a memorandum submitted to Sidambe’s office by the guards, they demanded their August and September salaries; payment for the overtime worked; provident fund contributions, which were allegedly deducted from their salaries; and their payslips. By the time of going to press, Motshekga had not responded to requests for comment. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Msindisi Fengu at City Press (subscriber access only)
An expected teacher retirement exodus could be just what the education system needs Financial Mail reports that for months education researchers have been flagging the fact that a huge wave of teacher retirements is going to hit SA between now and 2030, as more than half of public school teachers are already over the age of 50. But, the good news is that, given the strides universities have made in ramping up the production of young teachers in recent years, they should be better able to meet the additional demand. New teacher graduates also score significantly higher than older teachers on content knowledge tests. This has fuelled hope that replacing older teachers with younger ones en masse could lead to better results. The bad news is that the government doesn’t appear to have the funds, or the inclination, to hire those new graduates. And, if provincial education departments choose not to employ them due to budget pressures, teacher numbers will essentially fall, allowing class sizes to rise. These are among the key, preliminary findings presented to the government recently by Stellenbosch University associate professor Nic Spaull and a team of researchers. It’s their first report-back on a three-year research project (2022-2024), “The Teacher Demographic Dividend”. One of the most striking early findings is that young graduate teachers in SA perform significantly higher than older teachers in maths, and quite a bit higher in reading. “It is clear that older teachers who were educated and trained under apartheid have lower levels of content knowledge than their younger colleagues who were trained at universities post-apartheid. This trend is especially evident in mathematics,” the researchers found. Read the full original of the detailed report in the above regard by Claire Bisseker at Financial Mail (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Eskom ‘frustrated’ at having to ‘micromanage’ sabotage cases Sunday Times reports that Eskom has hit out at the slow pace of prosecutions involving people arrested for sabotage and other crimes against the state power utility. According to General Manager for Security, Karen Pillay, the state-owned power utility has to “micromanage” investigations. “We’ve had to extend support in the sense that we’ve put watching briefs on some of the cases, where we contract legal experts to guide some of these prosecutors, and even the investigative teams on specific matters,” Pillay reported. She went on to indicate: “We’ve had issues such as the unavailability of prosecutors after hours, unavailability and unwillingness of magistrates, having to force commissioned police officers to obtain confessions — this is really challenging and time consuming for us to manage. We have had incidents where individuals have been released on ridiculous amounts of bail. It almost gives one the sense that the severity of the incident, and the impact it has on the bigger scale of the economy, is not taken into consideration. We have also had incidents where a docket had sufficient evidence to warrant continued attention, but there’s been a lack of action in that regard. It’s literally a process of having to walk each case as we present it before the court, almost the process of micromanaging.” However, the National Prosecuting Authority has hit back, saying its specialised units were “highly skilled to deal with complex cases relating to essential infrastructure”. In the past year, the company has opened 16 cases with police relating to sabotage, two of which have been linked to Eskom employees. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Orrin Singh at Sunday Times (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Luxury vehicles seized in Mhlathuze Water Board corruption case News24 reports that Range Rovers, a BMW X6, a Mercedes-Benz V Class, a Jaguar and a Harley Davidson motorcycle were among assets the Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) seized from two Mhlathuze Water Board officials and a lawyer on Friday in a bid to claw back R37m from them. The accused are alleged to be among a group of government officials who colluded to sway the awarding of a legal services contract. The AFU, the police, and the Hawks' National Clean Audit Task team descended on homes in Umhlanga Ridge, Ballito, Mthunzini Estate, Ashburton, Pietermaritzburg, Richards Bay and Cape Town. The seizures are linked to allegations that Mhlathuze Water Board CEO Mthokozisi Duze and CFO Babongile Mnyandu, as well as attorney Sithembelo Ralph Mhlanga, worked together to bypass supply chain management protocols to award several orders to Mhlanga's law firm. The Mhlatuze Water Board had undertaken a process to appoint a panel of service providers to render legal services. The permitted budget was also allegedly puffed up by a staggering 640%. The accused then unlawfully awarded tenders to the value of approximately R37 million to one law firm (Mhlanga Incorporated) and excluded 15 other law firms. The CEO and CFO also allegedly received certain "benefits" from the law firm for sending the tender to them. The criminal matter returns to court on 6 December. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jenni Evans at News24 Gauteng health department launches independent probe after workers trash Kalafong Hospital The Citizen reports that the Gauteng Department of Health is set to appoint an independent investigator to look into allegations of maladministration and corruption at Kalafong Hospital in Atteridgeville, West of Pretoria. Services have recently been affected at the public health facility due to a series of protests and strikes by staff members, including nurses and general workers, to voice grievances against chief executive officer Dr Sello Matjila of unbecoming conduct. Last Wednesday, protesting workers went on a rampage, trashing the facility by emptying dustbins and scattering rubbish all over the facility, including inside the CEO’s office. Grievances also included disputes over payments related to annual performance bonuses, and the suspension of three shop stewards for taking part in the recent shutdown in protest against a 3% wage increase. “Following the recent labour unrest and subsequent disruption of services at Kalafong Provincial Tertiary Hospital… the Gauteng Department of Health will be appointing an independent investigator to probe all allegations made by various stakeholders at the facility,” acting Head of Department Arnold Malotana indicated on Sunday. In the meantime, Matjila will not be reporting to the facility, and Lebohang Mpshe has been appointed to act in his position while the department addresses the grievances. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sipho Mabena at The Citizen. Read too, Things are 'back to normal' at Kalafong Hospital, but CEO has been removed, at News24. En ook, Onafhanklike ondersoek kom by Kalafong-hospitaal, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
|
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page