Terry Bell writes that gunmen – usually referred to as iinkabi, a Zulu term meaning young bulls full of strength and action – have been accused of opening fire on a trade union gathering on Saturday, 24 June near the centre of Germiston.
According to Nhlanhla Makhaula of the local Casual Workers Advice Office, two union members, an official of the CWAO and two bystanders were wounded. Some 50 trade unionists and their supporters had been marching to a bakery in support of a delegation that delivered a protest to management about labour conditions and victimisation when the shots rang out and the crowd scattered. Several workers interviewed after the shooting said they believed the iinkabi to be "unofficial security" paid for by a number of businesses in the downtown area of Germiston. The protestors included members of the Simunye Workers’ Forum (SWF), the country’s newest trade union. After years of argument, the Labour Court recently overturned a decision by the registrar of trade unions that rejected the SWF’s application to register as a trade union. The court found that the intensely democratic structure of the SWF, featuring rotating rather than fixed office bearers, did not preclude formal registration. The fact that the SWF had emerged with the assistance of the CWAO was also no bar. Saturday was the first protest by the SWF as a union recognised as such. While also attracting interest from workers in permanent employment, the SWF is a response to the increasing casualisation of the labour market. Precarious work in the "gig economy", combined with the ongoing reliance on workers provided by labour brokers, has left many workers isolated. It has also helped undermine and weaken traditional trade union organisation. So, as far as many of the SWF members are concerned, they are part of building for the future and Saturday’s bloodshed will not deter them. "What happened made us all very frightened, but it will strengthen us," noted Vuyelwa, a worker at the local Simba factory.
- Read Terry Bell’s column in the above regard in full at Fin24 (subscriber access only)
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page