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 Friday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
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Nxesi heads to court to silence bribery claims on UIF deal Fin24 reports that Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) Minister Thulas Nxesi said on Thursday that he would be going to court to silence claims by businessman Mthunzi Mdwaba that he solicited a R500 million bribe to allow a dubious job creation scheme by the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) to proceed. Nxesi also wants the transaction set aside, saying that he had opposed it since the deal was first struck between Mdwaba and the DEL director-general, Thobile Lamati, last December. Mdwaba has alleged that Nxesi derailed the deal after Nxesi refused to pay Mdwaba a 10% bribe. The scheme involved an interest-free loan and a grant totalling R5 billion to Mdwaba's Thuja Capital. Thuja was to acquire equity stakes in various companies, which would then be persuaded to employ more people. While Mdwaba described it as a "job-creation scheme", Cosatu, which opposed the deal, described it as a "get-rich-quick scheme". At a press briefing, Nxesi said that the bribery allegations were not true and "were damaging the country", so he would now approach the courts urgently. He said Mdwaba would have to prove his allegations in court. Lamati resigned last month after a forensic inquiry. UIF Commissioner Teboho Maruping remains in his job. Maruping did not appear at the briefing, with acting director-general Alec Moemi explaining that Maruping had recently been ill. Nxesi would not discuss whether any other staff from the department, which includes the UIF, were implicated in the scheme as legal processes were still being followed. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Carol Paton at Fin24 (subscriber access only). Read too, Nxesi publicly denies R500 million bribery claims against him and other politicians, at The Star Nexsi denies that UIF has collapsed Fin24 reports that at a press briefing in Pretoria on Thursday, Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) Minister Thulas Nxesi said that it was not true that the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) had collapsed, although it was true that there were long waiting periods. The UIF is an unemployment insurance fund to which employers and employees contribute. Over time, it has accumulated large surpluses and now sits on assets of around R130 billion, most of which are invested by the Public Investment Corporation. Business organisations and labour have called for the UIF to be placed under administration due to "systemic collapse" and chaos in the payments system. Many workers who lose their jobs or go on maternity leave have to wait months before benefits are paid out. Some employees who should have been compensated for their loss of earnings due to the July 2021 riots are still waiting for payment. Nxesi said: "It is true that there have been problems, but we must not create a picture that everything has failed. Some workers do get their payments on time. During Covid and the Ters scheme, the majority of people did receive money, although some elements took advantage of our weak systems." The UIF has yet to complete its annual financial statements for 2022/23 and has just finalised those for 2021/22. This was because of the large discrepancies in the Ters scheme that had to be resolved before the books could be closed. Nxesi said that his department had commissioned a study from PwC into the problems at the UIF. He also said it was working with information technology contractors to strengthen the systems at the UIF. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Carol Paton at Fin24 (subscriber access only)
Gauteng education department official survives attempted hit in Joburg on Thursday News24 reports that a Gauteng Department of Education official survived an attempted assassination in the south of Johannesburg on Thursday afternoon. Department spokesperson Steve Mabona said the official, who has not yet been named, was from the Johannesburg South District overseeing learning and teaching support material (LTSM). "Immediate medical attention was provided, and we are relieved to report that the official is currently in a stable condition and receiving medical attention at a local facility,” Mabona said. Necessary support will be provided to the family. The shooting happened at the Chris Hani Road and Golden Highway intersection near the Southgate Mall, in the south of the city. Photographs of the crime scene show a bloodied man sitting in his car in the middle of the road. Bullet holes are visible on the driver's side of the vehicle. Gauteng Education MEC Matome Chiloane said: "While the motive is unknown, it is worrisome that an official can be targeted and shot at in that manner.” Read full original of the short report in the above regard by Iavan Pijoos at News24. Read too, Durban primary school principal shot dead, at The Witness Other internet posting(s) in this news category
High Court orders SARS to implement final leg of three-year wage agreement BL Premium reports that the Pretoria High Court has ruled that the SA Revenue Service (SARS) must honour the last leg of a three-year wage deal signed with unions in 2019. Dismissing the argument that SARS could not afford to do so because of the Covid-19 pandemic and low revenue collection, the court ordered it to pay the consumer price index (CPI) plus 2% salary increases to members of the Public Servants Association (PSA) and the National Education Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu). Together they represent a majority of SARS employees. Judge Elizabeth Kubushi also ordered SARS and commissioner Edward Kieswetter to pay the unions’ legal costs, including the costs of senior counsel. SARS signed the wage deal in 2019, pledging to its workers an increase of 8% in the first year, and CPI plus 2% in the second and third years. The inflation rate was 3.75% in 2021. While SARS implemented the wage deal in the first two years, it failed to honour the last year of the agreement, prompting the unions to approach the court. In her ruling on Wednesday, Kubushi granted the relief sought by the unions and dismissed a counter application by SARS and Kieswetter, which sought an order declaring the wage deal unlawful and invalid. Wednesday’s ruling comes against the backdrop of a Constitutional Court judgment in 2022, which allowed the government to back out of implementing the last part of the three-year wage deal signed in the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council in 2018 because the unions were “unjustifiably enriched” from the “impugned collective agreement”. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
Early childhood development sector workers, frustrated by “failures” in Free State education system, march in Mangaung GroundUp reports that starting at Ramkraal on the periphery of central Mangaung, hundreds of people marched on Wednesday to Free State Premier Mxolisi Dukwana’s office and to the provincial education department offices, where MEC Makalo Mohale was attending a meeting. “We marched because we are frustrated by the failures of the education system, especially directly affecting the early childhood development (ECD) sector,” explained Forum for Service Delivery’s Puseletso Mohokare. “The department is not attending to pressing matters such as cases of corruption and maladministration that is depriving our communities of basic services such as effective ECD and foundation education for our children,” said Mohokare. She claimed ECD managers and employees suffered “ill treatment” from education department officials and were “not addressed as human beings and as adults”. The protesters were against proposed budget cuts for the ECD sector. They also said there was too much paperwork and that they had to complete reports that should be done by officials. If the reports were “not good,” they were threatened with the closure of their ECD centres. The marchers’ memorandums were received and signed for by Mohale and by sports, arts and culture MEC Maki Mahasa on behalf of Premier Dukwana. The marchers promised to shut down the metro if they did not get a positive response. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Becker Semela & Dan Xangaza at GroundUp
Police step up fight against illegal mining as 172 suspects arrested in several raids in North West and Limpopo TimesLIVE reports that the Hawks have arrested another 172 suspects, including a man on bail in connection with a similar offence, as police stepped up their bid to eliminate illegal mining. Hawks head Lt-Gen Godfrey Lebeya on Thursday briefed media on the Hawks' successes during the second quarter of the 2023/24 financial year. An illegal mining disruptive operation at Zwartkop Zone 1 in the Northam area on 3 August resulted in the arrest of five suspects transporting chrome without a permit. Chinese national Cheng Liang Tom Chen was among those arrested. He had been released on bail regarding another case of illegal mining on 3 August 2022 in the Northam area. “Through the investigation by the Hawks, a warrant of arrest was issued for Chen and he was rearrested on July 17 2023. He pleaded guilty to two counts of illegal mining in the Thabazimbi regional court,” Lebeya reported. Chen was sentenced to an R80,000 fine or two years' imprisonment. In another case, an operation on 18 August at Scott Shaft in Stilfontein resulted in the arrest of 30 alleged illegal miners. They appeared in court on 21 August on charges of illegal mining, illegal possession of firearms and ammunition, illegal possession of gold, and conspiracy to commit an offence and were denied bail. The matter was postponed to 28 November for ballistics reports. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Shonisani Tshikalange at BusinessLive
Reserve Bank keeps repo rate steady at 8.25%, but warns of risks ahead BL Premium reports that while keeping the repo rate at 8.25% in a unanimous decision, the SA Reserve Bank (SARB) struck a hawkish tone after October’s consumer inflation surprised to the upside. Making the announcement on Thursday, Governor Lesetja Kganyago highlighted the risks associated with inflation, which has been sticky of late. The reading for last month came in at 5.9%, higher than an expected 5.6%. He also said that while load-shedding had eased recently it would still have an effect on the economy with “domestic growth likely to remain muted”. The Bank targets inflation of 3%-6%, but prefers to have the rate anchored at the midpoint of that range. It lowered its inflation forecast for 2023 to 5.8% from 5.9% at the September meeting. The Bank now expects average inflation of 5% next year, from 5.1% previously, while the forecast for 2025 remains at 4.5%. While Kganyago said logistical constraints in port and rail services were likely to “have broader effects on the cost of doing business and the cost of living”, the Bank raised its economic growth forecast to 0.8% for 2023 from 0.7% previously. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Andrew Linder at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Lees ook, Rentekoers weer onveranderd gelaat, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Post Office’s business rescuers want R3.8bn bailout, staff cuts of 6,000 and branches cut by 420 Fin24 reports that the SA Post Office's (Sapo’s) business rescue practitioners (BRPs) have proposed "right-sizing" the insolvent state-owned entity by cutting around 420 branches and axing 6,000 staff. Joint BRPs Anoosh Rooplal and Juanito Damons published their long-awaited business rescue plan on Thursday. "Our approach in the plan is to rationalise costs which are currently unsustainable and to assist in restructuring the Post Office into an efficient and future-proofed business," said Rooplal. Sapo, which has already received R2.4 billion in new funding from the government, needed an additional R3.8 billion bailout as "investment capital" for repair and modernisation, said the BRPs. The business rescue plan is not final and will have to be accepted by 75% of creditors at a vote next month in order to be implemented. Sapo was placed into provisional liquidation in February for not being able to pay its debts. The state-owned entity owes hundreds of millions of rands to its staff, retirement and medical funds, the SA Revenue Service and landlords. Ballooning staff costs have dwarfed its revenues, leading to it losing around R2 billion a year for the past three years. The BRPs said on Thursday they hoped to save around R1.2 billion in annual costs by retrenching 6,000 of the company's 11,083 employees. Cabinet has already given its blessing for up to 7 000 employees to be sacked. They said they also expect to see savings from cutting around 420 operational branches – some of which Sapo owns and others that it leases. That will leave it with around 600 branches. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jan Cronje at Fin24 (subscriber access only)
Woolworths defends executives’ pay as remuneration votes at AGM fall short BL Premium reports that Woolworths’ board has defended the R122m total pay of CEO Roy Bagattini, saying it was in line with industry standards for similarly sized JSE companies and adding that its executive pay was “not too high”. Speaking at the group’s AGM, non-executive director David Kneale, who chairs the remuneration and talent management committee, claimed salaries were benchmarked and “based on the JSE-listed retailers and other JSE-listed companies of a comparable size. We use similar Australian listed retailers, specifically, to determine Australian salaries”. Bagattini’s 2023 salary was almost double that of the CEO of Shoprite group, Pieter Engelbrecht, who earned R64.6m in its 2023 financial year. Checkers is thought to be winning market share from Woolworths. The Woolworths CEO’s 2023 base pay of R20.4m was, however, in line with industry standards and was comparable to the Shoprite CEO’s R18.7m in guaranteed pay. During the AGM, the Woolworths board faced three questions on pay from activists and an investment analyst. Two non-binding votes on pay by shareholders failed to garner the required 75% approval at the AGM, triggering a rule that Woolworths must meet or speak to unhappy voters. The implementation report on the 2023 pay levels was a fraction short of the requirement, with 74.26% of the votes cast in favour. The vote on the pay policy, which discussed future pay levels, garnered only 46.5% support. This was “disappointing” and followed extensive consultation with shareholders, said chair Hubert Brody. He advised that Woolworths would resume discussions with dissenting voters. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Katharine Child at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
Auditor-General demands to see letter dismissing Msunduzi Municipality’s human settlements head News24 reports that the Auditor-General's (AG’s) office has written an urgent letter to the crisis-marred Msunduzi Local Municipality to demand detailed information around dismissed human settlements head Rhada Gounden. Hours after a story was published about Gounden's dismissal, AG audit manager Ashnee Mohan wrote to Msunduzi Municipality manager Lulamile Mapholoba demanding to see Gounden's termination letter. Gounden is among four officials implicated in a Hawks investigation into a case of R14.2 million fraud at the municipality. Mohan asked for the following information around Gounden's termination, namely the termination letter; instruction letter for instituting investigation into allegations of fraud, if applicable or information on which public body the matter was referred to; a list of implicated officials; details of the supplier and payment report reflecting expenditure to date made to the implicated contractor; and all other applicable supporting documentation. As previously reported, in a letter to his friends, Gounden wrote: “Today, I was served with a termination of employment letter following a disciplinary process that found me guilty of financial misconduct. In the main, all the charges related to not having supporting documents when I signed invoices. A practice that is done in the entire organisation and for which there is no standard operating procedure for what supporting documents are needed to be attached to an invoice.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Soyiso Maliti at News24
Lotteries to lay criminal complaints against former board members after lack of progress by police, Hawks and NPA GroundUp reports that the board of the National Lotteries Commission (NLC) plans to lay criminal complaints against former members implicated in corruption, including the rampant looting of grant funding. The decision comes amid increasing frustration at the slow pace of investigations by police and the Hawks, and a lack of prosecutions by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). The board’s decision to act was revealed in parliament this week when the commission presented its 2022/23 annual report and second-quarter performance report to parliament’s trade, industry and competition portfolio committee. The commission’s new board has so far shown that it intends to stamp out the corruption that plagued the organisation. Board chair Barney Pityana told MPs that they also intended to launch civil litigation against former members implicated in the looting. He said: “Notwithstanding that various agencies are seized with this matter, we are of the view that ultimately the responsibility as a matter of law belongs to us as the substantive board of the NLC.” Minister of trade, industry & competition Ebrahim Patel told the meeting he fully supported the decision to act on several fronts against former board members. He made it clear that the planned actions were “not an alternative to criminal prosecution” but rather “a suite” of measures to “hold those implicated and those associated” with the looting accountable. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Raymond Joseph at BusinessLive Suspended KZN regional court president in dock on Thursday for allegedly selling acting magistrate posts News24 reports that suspended KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) regional court president Eric Nzimande made his first appearance in the Durban Magistrate's Court on Thursday on corruption charges. According to the indictment, Nzimande is alleged to have sought and accepted gratifications to the tune of R238,260 from attorneys he recommended for acting magistrate positions between 2012 and 2015. Nzimande was released on a warning and is expected to return to court on 20 May 2024. In August this year, Justice and Constitutional Development Minister Ronald Lamola told Parliament that his department had paid R6.3 million to Nzimande since his suspension in 2018. Nzimande is expected to face a disciplinary hearing from 22 January to 2 February 2024, on 162 charges. A commission of inquiry into the allegations against him will be presided over by retired Supreme Court of Appeal judge Jeremiah Shongwe. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nkosikhona Duma at News24 Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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