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 South African
labour-related reports.
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Pravin Gordhan, who fought state capture and twice served as finance minister, passed away on Friday News24 reports that Pravin Gordhan, the founding commissioner of the SA Revenue Service (SARS), twice finance minister and the face of the resistance against the Zuma and Gupta-led project of state capture, died on Friday morning at the age of 75. According to a statement from his family, Gordhan "passed away peacefully in hospital surrounded by his family, closest friends and his lifelong comrades in the liberation struggle". He is survived by his wife Vanitha, and his two daughters. Gordhan was admitted to hospital on Tuesday after a recent cancer diagnosis. The former freedom fighter and trained pharmacist retired from politics after the national and provincial elections in May, following a lifetime in politics. He became a lightning rod for vicious attacks and racial slurs because of his firm resistance to state capture, the project of grand corruption facilitated by former president Jacob Zuma, acting in concert with the Gupta extraction enterprise and various ANC patronage networks. During his second stint as finance minister, between December 2015 and March 2017, Gordhan and the senior leadership at National Treasury were the last line of defence against complete Zuma-Gupta capture of the state in which Treasury and the SA Reserve Bank was the biggest prize. His last posting in government, however, as the Minister of Public Enterprises, was unsuccessful because of the inability of various parastatals to improve their performance. Eskom was plagued by load shedding, mismanagement and corruption, while his attempts to offload SAA to private investors were disastrous. He remained deeply concerned about the continued existence of networks of patronage and corruption embedded in parastatals, especially at Eskom and Transnet, and was frustrated by the ANC's tolerance of many state capture figures that remain in leadership positions in the party, Cabinet and Parliament. Read the comprehensive report on Pravin Gordhan’s life by Pieter Du Toit at News24 (registration required)
Steenhuisen backtracks on GNU threats as Ramaphosa prepares to sign controversial BELA Bill on Friday News24 reports that President Cyril Ramaphosa is all set to sign the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Bill at the Union Buildings on Friday. This will come almost three years after the bill was introduced in the National Assembly, countless debates, resistance, and a threat from DA leader John Steenhuisen that signing the bill into law could jeopardise the government of national unity (GNU). Steenhuisen's ultimatum signalled the first major policy disagreement in the GNU and was the first test of the collaboration between the parties. After a conversation with Steenhuisen earlier on Wednesday, Ramaphosa invited the party leaders and signatories to the GNU for dinner at his state house in Newlands in Cape Town. By Thursday, Steenhuisen had changed his tune. He told the Cape Town Press Club that whether they approved of the BELA Bill or not, it would be law once Ramaphosa signed it. "You don't, frankly, have an option, whether you can abide by it or not abide by it. Of course, it is law and if you believe in the rule of law, you then can't believe in the arbitrariness of observing some laws but not others,” he commented. Meantime, Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube, in numerous letters and correspondence and public statements, has been very clear on her objections to the BELA Bill. "She sent the president a three-page letter just last week about this particular matter," Steenhuisen said. On Thursday, it was reported that Gwarube told a department workshop on Wednesday that her department would implement the bill if the president signed it. "Ours is not to listen to the political noise out there. We are professionals. If the bill is signed, we will implement it. That's it," Gwarube told the gathering. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Siyamtanda Capa, Jason Felix & Jan Gerber at News24. Lees ook, Steenhuisen oor RNE: SA ‘belangriker as politici se gevoelens’, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Dozens of key airline staff ordered to undergo new medical certificate examinations BL Premium reports that in a move that has potential implications for airline safety across Africa, the SA Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) has directed dozens of pilots, cabin crew and air traffic controllers to undergo new medical examinations after they were issued with allegedly fraudulent certificates declaring them fit to fly. At the centre of the scandal is SAA’s chief medical officer, Nonhlanhla Sishaba, who allegedly failed to submit crucial test results to the SACAA in support of the medical certificates she issued. She then continued to grant medical certificates after her authority to do so was revoked. Sishaba did eventually provide the SACAA with the outstanding test results, which contained so many anomalies that the authority launched an investigation. Its spokesperson Phindiwe Gwebu explained: “Our contention is she (Sishaba) cleared people who didn’t qualify to be cleared. In one example, the ECG test results revealed a severe heart problem, but a medical certificate was issued. Not all the [medical certificates] were necessarily wrong. But there were enough [discrepancies] to interrogate all her medical certificates.” The SACAA’s ongoing investigation has so far identified 103 people who received allegedly fraudulent certificates from Sishaba. The SACAA has authorised 83 doctors to conduct the health assessments required to issue medical certificates for licensing pilots, flight engineers, cabin crew and air traffic controllers. Pilots from many other African states obtain their licences in SA, supported by locally awarded medical certificates. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive (subscriber access only) Cosatu to take more action over Sea Harvest tragedy that cost 11 lives Cape Argus reports that the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) has requested a detailed report on what transpired when the lives of 11 Sea Harvest workers were lost at sea on 17 May. Cosatu secretary-general Solly Phetoe met on Wednesday with the devastated family members at the Stella Maris Seafarers Centre. They have unanswered questions as their loved ones, presumed to have drowned, remain missing. Tragedy struck when Sea Harvest’s deep-sea trawler FV Lepanto sank 30-35 nautical miles off the coast of Hout Bay. While nine people survived the ordeal, the bodies of the 11 crew members remain missing at sea, with search and rescue efforts called off on 19 May. Cosatu protested at Sea Harvest’s office in July to highlight health and safety in the workplace. The union federation also requested at that time that the SA Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA) should expedite its investigation into the incident. Phetoe now said they would be writing to the Ministers of Employment and Labour, Transport and Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE) to call for urgent action and intervention. “We are demanding a full, detailed report on what happened. Was the ship was in good condition, was there an investigation because there are allegations that the ship was not in good condition when it went out,” Phetoe asked. He said the meeting on Wednesday was called to get permission from the families to take further interventions. This may include court action, should they not receive satisfactory responses from the company and after having approached the various ministers. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Shakirah Thebus at Cape Argus Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Union leaders present government's 3% wage offer to members, but deem it insufficient amid rising living costs City Press reports that as the leaders of public sector trade unions present government’s 3% wage offer to their members for review, they stand firm in their belief that their demands are justified and reasonable. The government and unions representing SA’s 1.3 million public servants, including teachers, police officers, doctors and nurses, met on 3 September at a special Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) meeting to present their wage demands for 2025. The unions are pushing for a 12% pay increase for all public servants, effective from 1 April 2025. The unions, including the Public Servants Association (PSA) and other unions affiliated with Cosatu, Fedusa and Saftu, are also calling for improved benefits, including a higher medical aid subsidy, a R2,500 increase in housing allowances, and an increase in danger pay from R597 to R1,000. The government has rejected all demands, aside from the salary increase, citing financial strain. Reuben Maleka of the PSA, which represents over 245,000 public sector employees, dismissed the argument that public servants in SA were overpaid compared to their private sector counterparts. He said that the current cost-of-living crisis, marked by sharp increases in the prices of essentials like food, medical aid and other utilities, was severely eroding the disposable income of public servants. He went on to indicate: “We cannot run away from the fact that the public servants, for the past five years, have been receiving salary increases that are below inflation, and the worst part is that in 2020 the public servants did not receive any increase, they got zero percent. So, it is not true that 12% is higher or exorbitant.” The unions and government are scheduled to meet again later this month at the PSCBC to continue their wage talks. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thapelo Lekabe at City Press (subscriber access only)
Platinum sector estimated to have reduced headcount by 10,000 so far this year BL Premium reports that platinum supply has slipped back to pre-Covid levels after the sector reduced its headcount by about 10,000 employees during 2024 and recalibrated operations in response to a plunge in prices. This is according to the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC), which has warned that job cuts risk long-term production erosion. The council said the plunge in platinum group metal (PGM) prices had exerted significant margin pressure across much of the SA cost curve. “This 6% headcount reduction is higher than our forecast that SA platinum production will decline by 2% year on year in 2024. Though SA miners have met production guidance so far through 2024, when a shrinking workforce is considered in conjunction with lower capital expenditure, it increases the risk of production erosion in the future,” it noted. Impala Platinum CEO Nico Muller has ruled out the development of new PGM mines in SA, saying that the long-term outlook for demand in electric vehicles has reduced the desire to develop assets in the sector. SA, the world’s biggest platinum producer, is bearing the brunt of a plunge in PGM prices over the past year. Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) outlined plans in February to cut 3,700 jobs in SA in a bid to reduce costs by R5bn. Sibanye-Stillwater has already let 2,600 workers go at its PGM operations in SA. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Kabelo Khumalo at BusinssLive (subscriber access only) Villagers live next to reopened Bokoni platinum mine in Limpopo, but have no jobs GroundUp reports that about 100 residents from villages close to the Bokoni Platinum Mines in Limpopo marched on Wednesday to the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) in Polokwane, demanding that the department should intervene to ensure local residents were employed at the mine. A list of demands was handed to acting DMRE regional manager Vinesh Devchander. Along with the hiring of local labour, the demands included that the department should direct the mine to hold meaningful and proper consultations with the community on their 2024-2028 social and labour plans and should make a legal assessment of the mine prohibiting community members from accessing the sprawling mine premises. The march followed discussions between the department and the Baroka Ba Nkwana community last month, when it was agreed the department would facilitate a joint meeting between Bokoni Platinum Mines, which is a subsidiary of African Rainbow Minerals, and the community to discuss their grievances. Baroka Ba Nkwana Community Engagement Forum chairperson Kgotlelelo Mohlala reported that the DMRE promised to intervene, but had failed to do so. Magerule Sekgobela, who lives next to the mine, said he sent his CV to the mine several times, and had approached mine management in person in an effort to get a job, to no avail. Sekgobala said there were people working at the mine who came “from far areas, yet there are a lot of unemployed youths around the mine”. Simon Makhura said he worked at the mine for ten years before it closed in 2017. When it resumed operations he applied to work there again, but was unsuccessful. According to marcher Vivian Thobejane, mine management will only listen to the local community if they protest. “I remember well that the mine’s old management was prepared to work with us after several protests. We are going to apply the same method to the new management,” Thobejane said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bernard Chiguvare at GroundUp
Marikana acquittals are a profound setback for justice, says SERI SABC News reports that the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of SA (Seri), which represents widows and families of those killed in Marikana in 2012, says the recent acquittal by the North West High Court of six police officers is an injustice to the families of the deceased. Those acquitted include former North West deputy police commissioner Major-General William Mpembe, who was cleared of all charges concerning the killings of three mineworkers and two police officers in Marikana on 13 August 2012, three days before the notorious Marikana massacre. Mpembe, who resigned from his position in the police service in 2016, has been acquitted for the second time. In 2021, he was acquitted of defeating the ends of justice in the concealment of the murder of Modisaotsile van Wyk Segalala, who was one the 34 mineworkers who lost their lives in Marikana on 16 August 2012. Seri’s Asenati Tukela commented: “While we respect the legal process and the decision of the court, this outcome we feel is a profound setback in the pursuit of justice for those who lost their lives and for the families who continue to suffer from the trauma of Marikana.” Mpembe’s family noted that his acquittal was in line with the Marikana Commission of Inquiry’s decision to accept his denial that he gave the order to fire teargas or stun grenades on 13 August 2012. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sentleeng Lehihi at SABC News
Appeal against ruling that appointment of Cuban engineer was illegal unsuccessful Maroela Media reports that court ruling declaring the SA government’s appointment of Cuban scientists and engineers some four years ago was illegal remains in force. The application for leave to appeal the ruling, which was lodged by the then Minister of Water, Sanitation and Human Settlements, Lindiwe Sisulu, has been rejected by the court. The Supreme Court of Appeal ruled earlier this year that the procedure followed in respect of the appointment of the Cubans was flawed. This ruling also indicated that the appointments were unnecessary and unethical, as capable South Africans were overlooked. According to Anton van der Bijl, deputy chief executive of legal matters at Solidarity, the government has constantly tried to justify this injustice, but its appeal has now also been unsuccessful. He commented: “Although we are obviously delighted with the verdict, we expected it. The state deliberately decided to do the wrong thing in the name of a precarious political friendship with Cuba and in an attempt to win political points. The government has learned that South Africa and its people who pay hard-earned tax money come first and that they will not simply accept this type of abuse.” Sisulu appointed the engineers in 2020 at a cost of nearly R75-million. In its subsequent court challenge, Solidarity successfully claimed that the appointments were in conflict with the required appointment procedures that the department had to comply with. The trade union also argued that the appointments were unnecessary and unethical in circumstances where many South Africans were unemployed. Read the full original of the above report in Afrikaans at Maroela Media
UIF has managed to pay out over R419m since uFiling website went down nearly three weeks ago The Citizen reports that the Unemployment Insurance Fund’s (UIF’s) online platform, uFiling, has been down since the end of August after the platform’s support services were subjected to an interim interdict by the Pretoria High Court. However with the online downtime continuing, some branches have extend their operating hours. A total of 23 service and labour centres in five provinces will be open on Saturdays for the remainder of September (details in report). The uFiling platform enables users to apply for UIF benefits, register companies and employees for UIF and make payments to the fund. Despite the temporary shutdown of the site, UIF has processed roughly 181,000 claims and paid out R419,607,185 owed. The UIF has arranged for new employer registrations to be done through BizPortal. Electronic payroll declarations can be done by sending live payroll files via email to the Department of Labour at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. The DEL can also process new employer registrations by downloading the UI.8 and UI.19 forms from www.labour.gov.za and submitting the completed forms to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Manual payroll declarations can also be submitted to the DEL at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. using the UI.19 form. Employers can pay their relevant contributions directly to the DEL using the bank details listed on labour.gov.za using their UIF reference number as the payment reference. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jarryd Westerdale at The Citizen UIF issues warning to employers to register and pay – including anyone hiring a domestic worker BusinessTech reports that the recent announcement by the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) that it is cracking the whip on non-compliant companies serves as an important reminder for employers to ensure that they are on the right side of the law. This is outlined by Knowledge and Learning Lawyer at Bowmans SA, Chloë Loubser, who said that it was crucial for employers to ensure that they complied with UIF regulations or face some hefty repercussions. Failure to comply with the obligations in the Unemployment Insurance Act (UIA) and Unemployment Insurance Contributions (UICA) Act might result in an employer’s employees being unable to claim the benefits that they would otherwise be entitled to, which can have significant consequences for their well-being, Loubser pointed out. The UIF, established under the UIA and UICA, aims to mitigate the effects of unemployment. Broadly, the legislation outlines that an employer must pay the UIF for an employee who works more than 24 hours a month. Notably, this includes households that employ domestic workers. Recent surveys have shown that the vast majority of domestic workers are not signed up for UIF, leaving employers open to penalties. In August 2024, UIF commissioner Teboho Maruping said that his team was targeting non-compliant employers who have either not registered with the UIF or those who have registered and are deducting contributions from their employees, but were not paying these over to the UIF for their beneficiaries. According to the commissioner, over R100 million has been recouped in the last month from businesses not contributing to the fund. The BusinessTech report goes on to detail the requirements to be compliant. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Seth Thorne at BusinessTech
Fears that Emfuleni employees won’t be paid after Eskom attaches four of the municipality’s bank accounts The Citizen reports that according to the Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng, the financial problems in the Emfuleni Local Municipality may result in workers struggling to receive their salaries. The municipality has experienced financial problems for years and Eskom announced on Wednesday that it had attached four of the municipality’s bank accounts. Emfuleni owes the power utility R8-billion for bulk electricity. Nico de Jager, who serves on the provincial committee for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta), expressed concern that the attachments of the bank accounts would affect municipal employees and service delivery. “The municipality’s inability to access its funds will also jeopardise the payment of salaries to municipal staff, potentially leading to strikes and further deterioration of services,” he pointed out. The Emfuleni municipality is apparently now embarking on a rate collection blitz to recover money owed to it by residents. But De Jager blamed poor administration for the position the municipality has found itself in. “Despite the provincial Cogta department taking over the administration of Emfuleni in 2018, there has been little to no improvement in the municipality’s financial management and service delivery,” he stated. Emfuleni is also experiencing an environmental crisis with raw sewage spilling into the Vaal River due to collapsed infrastructure. The failure to pay Rand Water further exacerbates the water crisis in the region. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Itumeleng Mafisa at The Citizen
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