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 Thursday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related reports.
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Media24 to retain all journalists of newspapers to be closed and Beeld is no longer for sale Moneyweb reports that Media24 has announced it will retain all 66 journalists from the four print newspapers earmarked for closure. They will be incorporated into its Netwerk24, News24, and Daily Sun websites. Media24 also announced that its Afrikaans daily newspaper, Beeld, was no longer for sale. “Although we anticipate that the PDF versions of Beeld and Volksblad will no longer be available, the teams are working on plans to provide a digital presence for these historical and beloved brands on Netwerk24,” the company explained in a press release. Media24 defined a journalist as “any editorial member who works with pure journalistic content – whether they create it (in words or with photos or multimedia), or process and package it”. This means other retrenchments could still go ahead, as the original estimate before the latest announcement was that up to 400 jobs could be at stake. In the latest statement, Ishmet Davidson, CEO of Media24, said: “From the outset, Media24 undertook to keep job losses – particularly of our journalists – to a minimum, and this is an important breakthrough in our consultations with staff around the proposed closures of the print editions of Beeld, City Press, Daily Sun, and Rapport.” Media24 is in the process of selling its media logistics business On the Dot, along with its community newspaper portfolio, to Novus Holdings. The transaction still needs to be approved by competition authorities, which the company expects to be granted by October. However, the process may be delayed as Caxton and Capital Newspapers, which have already made a competing offer for the assets, have announced their intention to oppose the transaction. No restructuring or title closures will apparently commence prior to Competition Commission approval of the proposed sale of On the Dot. Capital Newspapers MD Riquadeu Jacobs commented that the latest announcement by Media24 illustrated the point that the closure of the newspapers was ill-conceived from the start. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jeremy Maggs at Moneyweb. Lees ook, Koerantjoernaliste by Media24 bly, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
KZN teacher unions demand urgent action after incidents of murder, robbery and a stabbing at three schools News24 reports that KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) teacher unions have raised serious concerns about escalating crime on school premises and have called on the education department to beef up security. The outcry follows a series of violent incidents, including murder, robbery and a stabbing, which took place at KZN schools this week. Dudu Khumalo, 46, a Grade R teacher at Phikiswayo Primary in Ntuzuma, was shot dead on Monday. Also on Monday, a 21-year-old matric pupil, at Isihlahla Senkosi High School in Nongoma, was stabbed and killed after he allegedly attacked other pupils. On Tuesday in KwaMashu, a group of teachers at Mukelani Primary School was left traumatised after they were robbed of their personal belongings by criminals on the premises. The teachers were also forced to transfer funds to the criminals via their cellphones. Nomarashiya Caluza of the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) said concerns around pupil and staff safety had consistently been raised, but without any action. Thirona Moodley of the National Professional Teachers' Organisation of SA pointed out that school safety was the most significant issue that had to be tackled. According to Moodley, numerous calls had been made to the department to address this issue, but they had fallen on deaf ears. KZN Education MEC, Sipho Hlomuka, said the department would work closely with law enforcement authorities to bring those responsible to justice swiftly. According to Hlomuka, measures were being taken to enhance policing at Mukelani Primary School and other schools in the region to prevent such incidents from recurring. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sakhiseni Nxumalo at News24 Teachers at KZN primary school robbed of personal belongings, forced to transfer money to assailants from bank accounts IOL News reports that a group of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) teachers were traumatised after they were robbed of their personal belongings and forced to transfer money through their cell phones to criminals. The KZN department of education said armed gunmen stormed Mukelani Primary School in KwaMashu on Tuesday. “According to reports, a group of criminals stormed the school premises, accosted and robbed the teachers of their personal belongings. They also forced them to transfer money from their accounts under duress,” the education department’s Muzi Mahlambi reported. He said the department strongly condemned this “deplorable act”. KZN education MEC Sipho Hlomuka said they would continue to monitor the situation closely and provide updates as more information become available. “As a department, we strongly condemn these criminal acts, preying on soft targets, our educators, who are hard at work in moulding ideal citizens,” he added. Measures are being put in place to enhance policing at Mukelani Primary School and other schools in the region to prevent such incidents from recurring. The department said it was working closely with law enforcement authorities to ensure that those responsible were brought to justice. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jolene Marriah-Maharaj at IOL News Limpopo cops injured in ambush by foreign nationals The Citizen reports that police officers in Limpopo were taken to hospital recently after being allegedly ambushed and stoned by several foreign nationals. Thirteen persons were arrested over the incident, and charged with attempted murder and assault. Members of the Provincial Organised Crime Unit and Tactical Response Team were tracing alleged drug dealers two weeks ago when they were ambushed “by a group of suspects who threw stones and assaulted them”. Some officers sustained injuries during the incident and were taken to hospital, said Limpopo police spokesperson Colonel Malesela Ledwaba. While the suspects initially evaded arrest, 13 foreign nationals were arrested on Tuesday. They were charged with attempted murder and assault (GBH). “The suspects who are aged between 20 and 42 years were all arrested in Unit F, Mankweng,” he indicated. They were due to appear in the Mankweng Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday. The Provincial Commissioner of Police in Limpopo, Lieutenant General Thembi Hadebe, strongly condemned the incident and said: “We will not tolerate such brazen acts of violence against our police officers. The suspects will face the full might of the law.” The ambush came months after a police station in Kimberley was attacked by a group of foreign nationals. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Oratile Mashilo at The Citizen Two SANDF members recovering after attacks by leopard at air force base in Hoedspruit News24 reports that two SA National Defence Force (SANDF) officials were injured when a leopard attacked them at the SA Air Force base in Hoedspruit, Limpopo. The attack happened in the Drakensig area at the weekend. The SA Air Force's Brigadier General Donavan Chetty said that in the first incident, a civilian defence force member was attacked by the leopard and was treated for the moderate wounds he sustained. "In the second incident, the member was immediately hospitalised after the attack but was released on the same day after being treated for his injuries. The members are doing well," he added. A thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding these incidents is being conducted. Chetty said management, in collaboration with wildlife experts and local authorities, was assessing the situation to implement appropriate measures to mitigate future risks. The Air Force base is in a catchment area of the Kruger National Park, which is known to have roaming wild animals, with over 150 known leopards being tracked in the area. The leopard has since been captured and relocated to Phalaborwa after wildlife teams were called to trace it. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Noxolo Sibiya at News24. Lees ook, Twee van weermag beseer toe luiperd by basis toeslaan, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Weapons used in deadly zama zama turf wars allegedly rented from Lesotho security force members News24 reports that the weapons used in some of the murders - including last week's tavern massacre - in the ongoing war for territory between zama zama (illegal mining) gangs in the North West have alleged been rented from members of Lesotho's security forces. Terene ea Khosi Mokata gang members had been told their Letlama rivals were drinking at a tavern in Kanana, in Orkney, on Friday night. The gang launched an attack, ambushing patrons in the tavern and leaving eight people dead. Four men arrested for the mass murder made a brief appearance in the Orkney Magistrate's Court on Tuesday. An illegal miner and former member of the Terene ea Khosi Mokata gang claimed on Wednesday that some of the weapons used in attacks between Basotho gangs were rented from Lesotho law enforcement personnel. The miner claimed soldiers and police officers in the kingdom were sympathisers of groups such as Terene. "Some of these firearms are brought in from Mozambique because we tend to work with them on some of the mines around Stilfontein. The weapons are kept in abandoned shafts and used mainly for security purposes and fighting off rivals from our territories," the illegal miner explained. "Sometimes you find that members of the Lesotho Defence Force and the Lesotho Mounted Police Service [LMPS] come into SA to carry out a hit, and slip back into Lesotho undetected," he also claimed. A North West police source, tasked with tackling the scourge of illegal mining around Klerksdorp, confirmed that they had previously recovered weapons which had serial numbers connected to the armies of neighbouring countries. A police source said that since the deployment of the SA National Defence Force in the area to combat illegal mining, zama zamas had resorted to robbing residents. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tankiso Makhetha at News24
Cape Town call centre boom saw 10,000 new jobs created in past year Fin24 reports that office space in Cape Town is being snapped up by business process outsourcing (BPO) companies, which have collectively been creating roughly 1,000 jobs a month in the city over the last year. According to Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, the BPO sector stands out as the fastest-growing employer in the city, with massive international firms such as EXL and Teleperformance rapidly expanding their presence. He was speaking at an event hosted by EXL on Wednesday, to celebrate the creation of 10,000 jobs by the BPO sector in Cape Town between March 2023 and the same month in 2024. The employment data was measured by CapeBPO, a special-purpose vehicle funded by the city to support the BPO sector. BPO operators offer services across a wide range of industries, including accounting, IT services, human resources, and analytics, but are most well-known for offering call centre services on behalf of clients. EXL’s Siddharth Goel said the company's headcount in SA grew from 1,500 to 4,600 in the space of a year. He said that the company focused on medium-to-high complexity jobs as their expectation was that lower complexity tasks would be disrupted by artificial intelligence. Goel said that SA was viewed as having a favourable regulatory environment by BPO companies, which was helping to drive the expansion of firms. He added that the company had been targeting the CBD in Cape Town, in part because of the lower stages of load shedding experienced in the area. Hill-Lewis pointed out that the expansion of these firms had also been a good thing for the property sector in the city, which has seen soaring growth in demand for office space. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by William Brederode at Fin24
eThekwini blames public works budget cuts for EPWP jobs bloodbath, but minister says it's metro’s fault News24 reports that a significant budget cut in a grant by the Department of Public Works has forced the eThekwini metro to lay off more than 2,800 Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) employees this week. The government-wide budget cuts – primarily aimed at reducing government deficits and debt levels - have taken a toll on several national departments' programmes. While eThekwini metro has blamed the budget cuts for forcing it to reduce the number of EPWP programme beneficiaries from 4,155 workers to 1,276, Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Dean Macpherson claims the metro is to blame. The jobs losses in eThekwini will top the agenda in the council meeting on Thursday, with a motion tabled by African People First president Muzi Hlengwa to be discussed to explore solutions to the unemployment problem. Letters were given to the workers in June, but the final confirmation their services were no longer affordable was only communicated in late July. The public works department reduced the programme's funding in eThekwini by R42 million, making the programme "unsustainable", Hlengwa said. Macpherson, whose department is the custodian of the programme, indicated that the issue had not been referred to his office. He commented further: "They've been using ratepayers' money to extend [and fund] the EPWP. They funded more than what we gave them. And so they created unrealistic expectations. We can't be held accountable for that. Only the City should be held accountable for that." Macpherson said he wanted to see the programme being used to upskill workers and not to boost political campaigns. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Soyiso Maliti at News24. Read too, Northern Cape's cash crunch: Government departments struggle as funds dry up, at News24
Labour minister Meth appeals to hospitality employers to comply with labour laws and regulations TimesLIVE reports that Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) Minister Nomakhosazana Meth has appealed to employers in the hospitality sector to comply with labour laws and regulations. Meth was talking on the sidelines of the blitz inspections being conducted by the DEL on Wednesday in Gauteng restaurants. She oversaw the inspections which were conducted in collaboration with Home Affairs, police and the Bargaining Council for Fast Food, Restaurant, Catering and Allied Trades. “I am appealing to employers [to accept] that the honeymoon is over. We are coming for them. They must make sure that they know labour laws and regulations and if they don't we will help them to know what the law says,” Meth indicated. In one of the restaurants in Waterfall, Midrand, it was discovered that some of the employees were foreigners without proper work documents. In another restaurant, an employer and three employees were taken in for questioning by police as the employees did not have the right documents. Meth also reported that the bargaining council had discovered variously that some of the employees had joined an unregistered union, that employers included tips as part of workers' salaries and that employees were not paid the minimum wage. The bargaining council’s Maggie Pooe said the main problem was that employees were paid less than the minimum wage. She also said many workers in the sector were undocumented foreigners. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Phathu Luvhengo at TimesLIVE
'Legs were used to apply minimum force,' claims defence lawyer in ‘blue lights’ N1 motorway assault case News24 reports that it was said in the Randburg Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday that eight VIP police officers assigned to protect Deputy President Paul Mashatile were using minimum force when they assaulted the driver of a VW Polo on the Joburg N1 freeway. The officers' lawyer claimed they were trying to keep the driver on the ground while they searched his car. "With regards with the use of legs, they applied minimum force to keep you to the ground as they searched the car," said Mswazi Makhubele as he questioned the driver of the car. This was the third day of cross-examination of the driver, who sustained injuries after Mashatile's convoy stopped him on the N1 freeway in 2023. The officers have since been removed from active field work. The accused face 12 charges, including pointing a firearm, reckless and negligent driving, malicious damage to property, assault with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, obstruction of justice, and assault by threat. A video that trended in July 2023 showed the witness lying on the floor being repeatedly kicked. "Although the accused do not agree that you were hit with a rifle, in the case that you were hit, you were hit by mistake while they tried to break the window," Makhubele stated. Continuing his trend at the last three court appearances, he said that the witness was not knocked unconscious, but was intoxicated. The driver, however, denied this and questioned why he was not arrested if he was under the influence of alcohol. The trial is set to continue. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Aphelele Mbokotho at News24 Mashatile's former VIP officers had to damage car to search for threats, defence claims News24 reports that the defence attorney for eight former VIP officers, who were tasked with protecting Deputy President Paul Mashatile, says they will plead not guilty to malicious damage to property as they needed to gain access to a car they considered a threat. The officers are on trial for allegedly assaulting the driver of a VW Polo on the N1 in Johannesburg in 2023. They were caught on a video that went viral, showing them dragging a man from a metallic blue VW Polo and kicking him as he lay on the ground. Wednesday was the third day of cross-examination of the driver of the vehicle, who sustained injuries after Mashatile's convoy stopped him on the N1. Defence lawyer Mswazi Makhubele argued: "When opening the boot, the accused wanted to search if there were any dangerous objects in the car because the manner you were driving in gave them the impression that you are posing a danger to the convoy." The witness denied this and pointed out that it was not necessary to damage the car because the accused did not search the car after breaking the window. "The only thing they found in the boot was bottles of beer and that's why they decided to leave because there was nothing dangerous," Makhubele said. The witness said: “I agree they found nothing dangerous, but what doesn't sit well with me was how they left me unconscious on the ground.” Makhubele maintained the officers did not notice he was unconscious, but rather believed he was intoxicated. He said the accused claimed the witness was driving recklessly that day. The witness denied this and said it was the officers who had been reckless because they pushed him off the road. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Aphelele Mbokotho at News24
Gauteng’s Amapanyaza crime wardens to be retrained as traffic officers The Citizen reports that Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi says the province will be pulling most crime wardens, also known as Amapanyaza, off the streets for further training. He indicated this during the Department of Community Safety’s budget vote at the Gauteng legislature on Wednesday. According to Lesufi, the crime wardens will now be trained to become Gauteng traffic officers. He claimed that since the wardens were activated more than a year ago more than 3,700 undocumented foreign nationals had been sent back home. “To date, 3,768 undocumented foreign nationals have been returned to their own countries. To date, 1727 drug lords have been arrested. To date, 2418 people that have been found with illegal substances have been arrested,” Lesufi claimed. He said that other victories included the arrest of hundreds of drunken drivers and the closure of numerous drinking spots. “This is as a result of the more than 6,000 young men and women appointed a year ago to protect this province,” he said. Lesufi also announced several new crime-fighting units in Gauteng, including an anti-land invasion unit and units that will protect Eskom and Rand Water infrastructure. The Department of Community Safety has been taken into the Premier’s office and does not have an MEC as its head. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Itumeleng Mafisa at The Citizen
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