In our Tuesday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related reports.
|
George building collapse death toll rises to 34 News24 reports that a person hospitalised in a critical condition after the collapse of the George construction site has died of his injuries. A police spokesperson confirmed the death, saying the number of people killed by the collapse on 6 May was now 34. Rescue efforts at the site concluded on Friday after a recovery operation that lasted 260 hours. Sixty-two people were extracted from the site, 28 of whom survived. Among those working the site were 15 South Africans, 19 Mozambicans, 13 Malawians, seven Zimbabweans and five Lesotho nationals. Repatriations are being undertaken by the consulates of Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi and Lesotho. Initially, between 75 and 81 people were believed to have been on site at the time of the collapse. The difference between the approximate number of people on site and the official number was due to duplicate names on the contractor's list, the fact that some of those on the list had not been at work on the day of the collapse, and because some workers had left the site before first responders arrived. On Friday, the site, which has been classified as a crime scene, was handed over for a formal investigation by the police, following which the site will be handed over to the Department of Employment and Labour for its formal investigation. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nicole McCain at News24. Lees ook, Nog een sterf in hospitaal ná George-tragedie, by Maroela Media Building medical aid urges construction industry to increase safety measures in wake of George tragedy Engineering News reports that the Building and Construction Industry Medical Aid Fund (BCIMA) has called for a review of the safety practices on construction sites and the prioritisation of the health of construction workers. This followed the collapse of a five-storey residential building in George, in the Western Cape earlier this month. The fund pointed out that the 34 lives lost in the tragedy were a reminder of the risks and sacrifices construction workers faced daily. The five-storey residential building was under construction along Victoria street, in George, and would have been occupied from 1 August. The BCIMA reaffirmed its commitment to the health and wellbeing of the building and construction industry’s men and women, without whom there would be no hospitals or cities or other infrastructure being built. It expressed the hope that the George building collapse would be a turning point in the industry and that the safety of workers would be carefully considered at all times. The search and rescue operation since the incident occurred lasted a total of 260 hours, with personnel having worked on a 24-hour basis. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Engineering News. Read too, George building collapse exposes long-standing blindspots in construction industry’s regulatory framework, at Business Report Sasko 'devastated' after two men shot dead inside bread van in Cape Town on Thursday News24 reports that Western Cape police are on the hunt for gunmen who shot dead two men and seriously injured a third inside a Sasko-branded bread delivery van in Cape Town last week. The shooting took place on the corner of Delft Main Road and Symphony Way in the early hours of Thursday morning. The perpetrators fled the scene and have yet to be arrested. The incident was recorded by the dash camera inside the van and subsequently posted to social media. In the video, the three men can be seen sitting, counting money and laughing. When the gunmen show up, they take the money from the driver, and then fire multiple shots at the victims before fleeing the scene. Cornel Vermeulen of Bakeries at PepsiCo SA, which owns Sasko, reported: “There were three people in the truck. The driver and one assistant were fatally wounded; the other assistant was shot in the arm and face – he managed to get out of the truck and look for help.” The truck, operated by one of Sasko's independent distribution contractors, had completed a delivery of bread to a shop in Delft and was leaving the premises when it was targeted. No stock was removed from the truck, and it is not known how much cash was taken. Vermeulen said: "Sasko is devastated by this incident and, although these victims were not directly employed by Sasko, it has reached out to the families of the deceased to provide support." Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lisalee Solomons at News24. See too, Police probe gruesome Cape Town bread truck killings captured on dashcam, at TimesLIVE Search called off for 11 missing Cape Town fisherman presumed drowned at sea News24 reports that the search for 11 missing fishermen who went missing after their vessel, MFV Lepanto, sank on Friday at about 15:34, has been called off. Sea Harvest, the company that owns the fishing trawler which sank 34 nautical miles (nearly 63km) off the coast of Hout Bay, confirmed that the search had been called off due to the significant time that had lapsed since the boat sank. An extensive search and rescue operation took place, but tragically the missing crewmen are now presumed drowned. Sea Harvest CEO Felix Ratheb said: "We are working closely with the relevant authorities, primarily the South African Maritime Safety Authority (Samsa), to establish the cause of the accident as soon as possible. We wish to thank our employees and the rescue organisations for their active search and rescue operations since Friday." According to the Samsa's Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), they received a distress call about a vessel rapidly sinking, west of Slangkop Lighthouse. Nearby fishing vessels responded to the mayday call and the FV Armana successfully rescued nine crew members, leaving 11 others unaccounted for. The nine crewmen were rescued from a life raft and brought to shore unharmed. Samsa's Tebogo Ramatjie confirmed that after reviewing progress of search efforts, the continuous lack of sighting reports, and the unfavourable weather, the MRCC had decided to conclude the search and rescue effort. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nicole McCain at News24. Read too, Premier, Cape Town mayor visit families of 11 fishermen presumed drowned at sea, at News24 Two North West police officers commit suicide Maroela Media reports that the police in North West on Monday encouraged members to make use of the employee health and well-being services for psychological-social support. This after two policemen allegedly killed themselves over the weekend. A 58-year old warrant officer, attached to the Mahikeng Public Order Police (POP) in Dithakong allegedly shot dear his wife and then turned the gun on himself. The incident took place in the early hours of Saturday morning. The bodies of the couple were found in their bedroom. The motive behind the killing is still unknown. A 50-year-ol lieutenant colonel, attached to the provincial tactical response team (TRT) in the Dr. Kenneth Kaunda District Municipality, allegedly shot himself dead on Sunday morning along the New Machavie Road outside Potchefstroom. No foul play is suspected and an inquest continues. Read full original of the short Afrikaans report in the above regard by Elisma van der Walt at Maroela Media
Strike looms as union calls for a third guard in Cash-in-Transit vans The Citizen reports that the Motor Transport Workers Union (MTWU) say its members in the Cash-in-Transit (CIT) sector are worried about their safety as the number of attacks on money vans has increased. The union has threatened to go on a national strike if the CIT companies do not agree to honour a demand to have a third person travel with the two who normally transport money around. Union spokesperson Musa Tshabalala said attacks on CIT workers had reached alarming levels: “If you look at the current situation in our country, once a week there are CIT vehicles that are being bombed, there is a CIT vehicle that has been robbed, and there is a member who is being injured. This is about the safety of our members that are not protected on the current two-man trip.” According to Tshabalala, a third guard in the vehicle would be able to escort another CIT official who has the cash while another one remained in the van. He said while CIT workers were offered bulletproof vests and guns, that was not enough. “MTWU wants to finally place on record to its members and the public that the Employers ‘Associations representing the CIT companies must agree to the proposed turnaround strategies and mechanisms advocated for, to advanced and implement them, as these measures will undoubtedly mitigate the spike of cash-in transit and the associated risk,” Tshabalala indicated. The union is expected to announce dates for the commencement of the strike this week. Tshabalala warned that malls, ATMs and the taxi industry would be affected should unions in the sector go on strike. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Itumeleng Mafisa at The Citizen
Pikitup's casual workers vow to intensify their protest over permanent jobs throughout this week EWN reports that as rubbish remains uncollected in some parts of Johannesburg, Pikitup's casual workers have vowed to intensify their protest throughout the week. The workers, whose contracts will expire soon, have gathered at different depots in the city demanding permanent employment from the waste collecting entity. Monday was the third day that the workers downed tools. The casual workers protesting outside depots in parts of the city said they would not be bullied into backing down from the protest. This after Pikitup deployed public order officers to remove the protesting workers from the depots on Friday. One of the employees, Enos Maake, said this protest would continue all week and added: "We are going to caucus with other depots on how we can best intensify so that we can apply pressure." Waste collection has been affected in various areas, including Randburg, Midrand and Roodepoort. Read the original of the short report in the above regard by Gloria Motsoere at EWN See too, Trade union accuses ActionSA of inciting striking Pikitup workers, at Mail & Guardian (subscriber access only)
Impala Platinum concludes R9bn empowerment deal following RBPlats acquisition Fin24 reports that Impala Platinum has concluded a R9 billion broad-based black economic empowerment (B-BBEE) transaction at both its Impala Rustenburg and Impala Bafokeng assets. The transaction will result in 13% B-BBEE ownership at both Impala Platinum, which owns the Impala Rustenburg and Impala Refineries assets, and Impala Bafokeng through its wholly owned subsidiary, Impala Bafokeng Resources. Equity ownership in Impala and Impala Bafokeng Resources will be via an employee share ownership trust, a community share ownership trust and a strategic empowerment consortium, with ownership of 4%, 4% and 5%, respectively. The transaction forms part of the merger approval conditions imposed on Impala prior to its hard-won acquisition of Royal Bafokeng Platinum which was finalised in September last year after an 18-month-long tussle with competing bidder Northam Platinum. Implats had committed to renew and promote a greater spread of ownership in the merged business. CEO Nico Muller said the transaction reaffirmed Impala’s commitment to meaningful and sustainable economic empowerment across its operations and increased broad-based ownership in the Platinum Group Metals (PGM) sector. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lisa Steyn at Fin24. Read too, Impala's new R9bn empowerment deal, at TimesLIVE Other labour / community posting(s) relating to mining
Employment environment bleak, but there are opportunities for improvement Engineering News reports that the 2024 ‘UASA South African Employment Report’ and second UASA/Bureau of Market Research (BMR) Employment Index paints a bleak picture of the country’s employment situation. However, there are areas of focus that can be pursued to turn this around, including skills development to capitalise on technology advancements. This was highlighted by speakers who presented the reports on 17 May. BMR Personal Finance Research Division head and senior researcher Jacolize Meiring said the BMR’s research showed that SA continued to grapple with numerous acute labour market challenges. These included low job creation rates resulting from, among other things, slow economic growth, a lack of elasticity in the relationship between employment and economic growth and low skills levels among those who were actively seeking employment. Further, a large number of positions that non-tertiary qualified workers would typically fill were instead occupied by those with a tertiary-level education, resulting in a less-than-ideal level of non-tertiary qualified worker absorption into the labour market. BMR Market Intelligence Research Division research director and head Professor Carel van Aardt said the primary and secondary sectors were stagnating in terms of the number of people they employed, however, some positives were being achieved by the tertiary sector. He noted that the current economic and employment paradigm was not working, and was not giving rise to the high levels of economic and employment growth required to address the country’s challenges. However, while this was bleak, he said it also presented an excellent opportunity for a new paradigm to be implemented, provided there was the requisite national political will to undertake that. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Engineering News
Bogus teacher with fake matric certificate pocketed over R1.2m salary before getting caught City Press reports that Ntombelanga Labane’s forged matric certificate was so convincing that she was not only admitted and obtained a university degree, but she was also able to dupe the Mpumalanga education department to hire her as a teacher. But, a whistleblower exposed her deception and, by the time she was caught out in 2022, she had already pocketed over R1.2 million in salary as a teacher. In September 2016, Labane applied for a business and accounting educator’s post at Hlelimfundo Secondary School in Amersfoort. She submitted a CV and attached copies of the fraudulent Matric certificate, a Bachelor of Education degree as well as a SA Council for Educators (SACE) certificate to the school principal. The school management agreed that Labane was suitable for the post and the principal also informed the School Governing Body (SGB) about the decision taken by the school management team. All relevant documents were then sent to the circuit manager, who signed and handed them to the department’s district office in Ermelo. The department’s human resource processed her application, captured her details on the Persal system and she was hired. The whistle blower who knew that Labane did not pass matric reported the matter to the Public Service Commission. It was discovered that Labane had used a certificate number and results of another matriculant to forge her matric certificate. The 40-year-old appeared before the Amersfoort Magistrate’s Court on Thursday on charges of fraud and the case was postponed to 13 June 2024 for further investigation. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sipho Mabena at City Press (subscriber access only)
Dismissed Cape Town principal who defied Covid instruction to open school goes to court to seek reinstatement News24 reports that a Cape Town principal who was dismissed for defying an instruction to open his school during the Covid-19 pandemic is fighting tooth and nail to get his job back. Wesley Neumann, the former headmaster of Heathfield High School, was in the Cape Town Labour Court (LC) on Wednesday in a bid to overturn a finding by the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) confirming his dismissal in June 2023. He filed a review application in the LC in July 2023 and the matter was deliberated last week. The popular Cape Town teacher, who has a huge fan club supporting him in his fight for reinstatement, was dismissed by the Western Cape Education Department (WCED) on 20 May 2022 after being found guilty on five charges of misconduct. Among the charges was the failure to carry out a lawful order after being instructed by the head of department at the time, Brian Schreuder, to ensure that every Grade 12 pupil and parent was informed in writing that Grade 12 pupils must be physically present at school from 3 August 2020 until the time they completed their final exams. After being found guilty, Neumann lodged an appeal with then-Western Cape Education MEC Debbie Schafer and was offered the option of accepting a demotion to the post of head of department, which he declined. In court papers, Neumann stated that while many educators participated in a campaign to close schools, he was the only employee to face disciplinary charges. The WCED argued that the arbitrator had found Neumann's dismissal to be procedurally and substantively fair. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Prega Govender at News24
Suspended KZN court president's pre-trial hearing on corruption charges set for August News24 reports that the case of corruption against the suspended KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Regional Court president Eric Nzimande has been adjourned until 15 August for pre-trial proceedings. Nzimande briefly appeared in the KZN High Court in Durban on Monday amid allegations that he pocketed R238,260 from attorneys he recommended to the justice minister for acting magistrate positions between 2012 and 2015. Nzimande was suspended with full pay in October 2018 and, if found guilty, could face life imprisonment. The 62-year-old reportedly faces five counts of corruption under the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act. In August last year, Justice Minister Ronald Lamola revealed that Nzimande had been paid R6.3 million since his suspension over five years ago. Nzimande is currently the subject of a disciplinary inquiry launched by the Magistrates Commission looking into 162 charges of misconduct. In addition to the corruption allegations against him, the inquiry is also probing claims of gambling during office hours, overlooking a magistrate who gave lenient sentences to rapists, requesting sexual favours from female legal practitioners, as well as sending an unsolicited picture of his genitals to one of the persons recommended for a position. He has pleaded not guilty and claimed that the payments he had received from attorneys were loans, some of which he had paid back. His lawyer told the commission that Nzimande would be absolved of the charges against him. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nkosikhona Duma at News24
|
Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page