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 recent South
African labour-related reports.
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Union federations demand end to austerity measures and focus on service delivery at Sona BL Premium reports that labour federations have called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to take decisive action in his state of the nation address (Sona) on Thursday to address the country’s socioeconomic crises. The address, which marks the annual opening of parliament, will be Ramaphosa’s first as head of the government of national unity (GNU) that was formed after the ANC lost its majority support during general elections in May 2024. The Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa) and Cosatu said they were “strongly” opposed to the continued implementation of austerity measures, “which have disproportionately affected the working class and the most vulnerable in our society”. Fedusa’s Riefdah Ajam said: “As the voice of 617,000 workers, Fedusa urges the government to take bold, decisive action to address critical socioeconomic challenges and implement measures that promote inclusive growth, job security, and social justice.” Cosatu spokesperson Zanele Sabela said the federation was anxious to hear what Ramaphosa would say regarding a political solution to the conflict in east of Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) that has claimed the lives of 14 SA National Defence Force troops. Cosatu also called on Ramaphosa to discuss public employment programmes. National Council of Trade Unions (Nactu) general secretary Narius Moloto said they hoped the president would address the scourge of unemployment in SA and “continued retrenchments”. SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said they approached the Sona with “deep concern and scepticism.” He explained: “Saftu has consistently warned that the coming together of these two political forces would be a doomsday scenario for workers and the poor. We expect no fundamental changes to the failed economic programmes that have reproduced unemployment, poverty, and inequality.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
No improvements, underspending and lack of accountability are issues Compensation Fund still faces The Citizen reports that the Auditor-General (AG) has revealed details about ongoing issues at the Compensation Fund (CF) and has highlighted a lack of accountability and ineffective consequence management. Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (Scopa) was addressed by officials from the AG’s office on Wednesday regarding the annual reports and financial statements of the CF and the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF). The CF, which operates under the Department of Employment and Labour, is mandated to provide compensation to employees for disability, illness, and death resulting from job-related injuries and diseases. Senior AG manager Bulelwa Sikweyiya informed MPs that the CF’s audit outcomes had shown no improvement, with the institution receiving a disclaimed audit outcome in the 2023/2024 financial year. “At least for about 12 years now, the Compensation Fund has been a disclaimer opinion, and the key issues that we have noted over the years are pointing to a breakdown in the internal controls,” Sikweyiya noted. She explained that these issues were not isolated to specific areas within the CF, such as financial statements. “In some of the instances, we have also noted that the fund is struggling to provide support evidence, which is what has led to the disclaimer opinion. We end up in a situation where we are unable to verify what is reported by the fund,” Sikweyiya advised. She stressed that the AG’s office was concerned about the entity’s recurring challenges. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Molefe Seeletsa at The Citizen
Indications show that PSA members are ‘positive’ about government’s 5% wage offer BL Premium reports that the Public Servants Association (PSA), which represents more than 245,000 teachers, nurses, doctors and other public sector employees, says a number of its members are in favour of the government’s revised wage offer of 5% for 2025/26. The PSA’s Reuben Maleka indicated on Wednesday that the union had concluded its mandate-seeking process and was collating data to get a clearer picture. “We will be able to know whether we are signing the deal by Friday. Some of our members voted manually and others electronically…. the electronic data coming through is positive,” Maleka said. In January, the government increased its wage offer for 2024/25 to 5% from 4.7%, prompting public service unions to slash their pay demand to 6% from 12%. The revised offer led to unions embarking on a mandate-seeking process. The term of the agreement would be three years. The wage increases for the 2026/27 and 2027/28 financial years would be linked to the consumer price index (CPI). The government has offered increases in various allowances, including housing (from R1,784 to R1,900 on 1 April, with a further CPI-determined adjustment for 2025/26). The danger allowance would increase from R623.29 to R650 for 2025/26 and thereafter by CPI, while the special danger allowance would be adjusted from R931.82 to R950 on 1 April. The death grant, childcare and breastfeeding facilities, recruitment policy, bursary scheme for public servants’ dependants, standardisation of uniform policy, an incentive policy framework and comprehensive danger insurance “will be researched, and position papers will be developed for future negotiations”. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
Five miners perish in two incidents on Tuesday at Harmony Gold’s Doornkop and Joel mines Mining Weekly reports that Harmony Gold Mining Company has confirmed two separate loss-of-life incidents on 4 February at its Doornkop and Joel mines, which resulted in five mineworkers losing their lives. Two employees lost their lives following a mining incident at a development end at the Doornkop mine, in Soweto, Gauteng. According to the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), four mineworkers were also seriously injured in this incident. In a separate incident, three employees succumbed to their injuries following a fall-of-ground incident at the Joel mine, near Theunissen, in the Free State. The causes of these two unrelated incidents are currently under investigation, both internally and by the regulator. “We are devastated by the news of these tragic incidents. The safety and wellbeing of our employees is our first priority and the loss of lives of our colleagues is deeply saddening … We are doing all we can to prevent safety incidents through embedded and proactive risk management practices alongside our humanistic safety culture transformation journey,” Harmony CEO Beyers Nel said. Amcu, however, said Harmony Gold’s safety record remained a concern. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Mining Weekly Picket at Mining Indaba demands justice for Stilfontein zama zamas GroundUp reports that about 50 people picketed outside the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC) on Wednesday, where the annual Mining Indaba conference was underway. The group called for justice following the Stilfontein mining tragedy. Placards read: “Justice for the miners”, “Cops protect capital not people”, and “Nobody is illegal”. Last month, more than 240 zama zamas (illegal miners) were rescued and about 78 bodies were retrieved from the abandoned North West mineshaft. The miners had been trapped underground for months, with little to no access to food, water and medication. Speaking to the crowd outside the indaba, Gabriel Klaasen – from the African Climate Alliance – called for justice to be done and reparations to be paid to the families of the Stilfontein miners who lost their lives. He accused the government of xenophobia, racism and Afrophobia in its response to the events that unfolded at the illegal mining site. David Le Page, director of Fossil Free SA, said what happened in Stilfontein was an “absolute outrage”. “In a constitutional democracy, the life of every single human being should be equally sacred and treated with the same importance by every organ of the state, which is the very opposite of what we’ve seen happen,” he said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Liezl Human at GroundUp. Read too, Activists picket in Cape Town in solidarity with Stilfontein illegal miners, at EWN Other labour / community posting(s) relating to mining
Labour Minister announces increase in national minimum wage from 1 March to R28.79 per hour TimesLIVE reports that Department of Employment & Labour (DEL) Minister Nomakhosazana Meth has announced an increase in the national minimum wage (NMW) rate from R27.58 to R28.79 for each ordinary hour worked. The minister has fixed 1 March as the date on which the new NMW will be effective. The NMW is the minimum amount of pay that an employer is legally required to remunerate employees for work done and no employee should be paid below the NMW. However, because of special dispensation under which they were hired, workers employed on the expanded public works programme (EPWP) will only be entailed to R15.83 an hour. These new amounts were published in a Government Gazette on Tuesday. The DEL pointed out that the NMW determination included vulnerable sectors such as farm workers and domestic workers, who since 2022 have been aligned with the general NMW rates. The department confirmed that the 4.2% increase applied to all workers. The NMW does not include payment of allowances such as transport, tools, food or accommodation, or payments in kind (board or lodging), tips, bonuses and gifts. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ernest Mabuza at BusinessLive. Read too, Here’s how much domestic workers should earn from 1 March, at The Citizen Government must allow for public comment on national minimum wage increase, IRR insists The Institute of Race relations (IRR) issued a statement on Wednesday noting that, while the national minimum wage (NMW) will be hiked from 1 March in line with new regulations issued by Department of Employment & Labour (DEL) Minister Nomakhosazana Meth, no provision was made for the legal requirement of a 21-day period for public comment. “The fault here primarily lies with Minister Meth’s department, which has failed to make it clear, either in the Government Gazette or in its public statements, that the period for public comment on the NMW adjustment should still be open. Furthermore, not only has this crucial fact not been properly communicated, but Minister Meth has failed to provide any channel for the public to use to submit written comment on the draft regulations. The combined effect is to shut down legally required public participation,” the IRR argued. It noted that the Minister’s conduct was in direct contradiction of the duty imposed by the NMW Act. The IRR maintained that in this particular case, the public must be allowed 21 days to comment on Minister Meth’s draft proposal to hike the NMW by the Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 1.4%. IRR Legal has written to Minister Meth requesting that she urgently publish a revised draft of the regulations to comply with the law. This must include a clear invitation for public comment, details of the channels the public can use to submit their comments, and confirmation that such comments can be made within at least 21 days of the publication of the lawfully corrected draft. Read the IRR’s media statement in the above regard at IRR News Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Government signals breakthrough in NHI impasse Bloomberg reports that SA’s government has signalled that it is making headway in resolving an impasse over a new national medical insurance plan that critics say will infringe on the rights of patients and healthcare workers and sideline the private sector. President Cyril Ramaphosa signed off on the National Health Insurance (NHI) Act shortly before May elections in which the ANC lost the parliamentary majority it had held for the past three decades. A government of national unity (GNU) was formed after the vote and some of its members oppose the NHI legislation, which provides a framework for citizens to secure universal access to health care through a centrally managed government fund that will buy services from public and private providers. The law as it stands would ban the private sector from offering cover for treatment to be available under NHI. An understanding has been agreed to drop a provision that would have caused the collapse of private medical-insurance companies, DA leader John Steenhuisen indicated on Wednesday. “I expect that the NHI Act will have to have some of its provisions redrafted. This is a compromise that has been reached,” Steenhuisen stated. A Presidency spokesman said Ramaphosa was committed to ironing out differences within his administration over the NHI and “one would not be entirely surprised if an agreement is reached in that regard.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Paul Vecchiatto & Mike Cohen at Moneyweb NHI compromise a step in right direction, but not good enough, says Solidarity Maroela Media reports that Solidarity views the ANC’s willingness to hold talks with the DA on the National Health Insurance (NHI) as a step in the right direction, but says that alone is not good enough. According to the trade union, this supposed concession between the parties does not address the underlying core problems of the NHI. “The recent compromise between the ANC and the DA on the proposed preservation of medical aid funds indicates some progress, but it remains insufficient to make a real difference to the NHI. Although this proposed compromise provides for the continued existence of private medical aid funds under the NHI, it does not mean that members of medical aid funds will escape the mandatory financial contribution to the NHI,” Solidarity pointed out in a statement on Wednesday. According to Theuns du Buisson, economic researcher at the Solidarity Research Institute, the ANC/DA compromise offers no relief for the double financial burden to be placed on members of medical aid funds. He motivated further: “Although a limited tax credit for private medical aid funds is applicable in the compromise, the obligation to pay for the NHI remains unavoidable. This would place further pressure on a population already burdened by rising living costs and economic challenges. The financial implications of the NHI remain unsustainable under the compromise between the ANC and the DA, and the country is still in a position where it cannot bear the enormous costs of the NHI.” Solidarity has rather encouraged political parties to support practical, sustainable solutions such as Solidarity’s Health Funding Reform Bill, which is already supported by the DA and the Freedom Front Plus. Read the full original of the report in the above regard in Afrikaans at Maroela Media
Gauteng fires five officials guilty of graft in R580m refurbishment of hospital donated by AngloGold Ashanti for Covid patients City Press reports that the Gauteng health department has fired five of the nine officials embroiled in the R580 million corruption relating to the refurbishment for Covid of a Anglo Ashanti hospital, but it has failed to explain why it took the provincial government three years to conclude the disciplinary hearings. The department instituted disciplinary action against the implicated officials in January 2022 following recommendations from the Special Investigation Unit (SIU). The officials faced several charges, including misconduct, fraud and corruption. This was after the SIU found that the initial budget to renovate the hospital had ballooned from R50 million to more than R580 million. On Tuesday, the department revealed that five officials had been fired, two were issued with written warnings, one was acquitted and the one had left the department. The DA’s Jack Bloom welcomed the conclusion of the disciplinary process, but lamented that the delay had cost the taxpayer more than R20 million in salaries while the suspended officials sat at home. Bloom said criminal charges should be laid against the implicated officials as well as those in the companies that had benefitted from the irregular contracts. He added that there should also be political accountability for the extremely poor decision to refurbish this hospital in Carletonville that had been donated by AngloGold Ashanti. The hospital was supposed to have been be used for Covid-19 patients in 2020, but only 100 were treated there. The hospital is now abandoned and vandalised. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sipho Mabena at City Press (subscription or trial registration required). Read too, SIU welcomes action taken against officials in hospital refurbishment corruption, at TimesLIVE. En ook, Anglo Ashanti-debakel: Korrupte amptenare gestraf, by Maroela Media
Dispute over safety of drivers keeps Rea Vaya bus service suspended, with 30,000 commuters stranded News24 reports that the 30,000 commuters who rely on the suspended Rea Vaya bus service to get to and from work every day will have to wait until drivers feel safe before the service resumes. The Johannesburg bus rapid transit system is still suspended following the killing of two of its drivers on Monday night. On Tuesday, the entity told commuters it would run again on Wednesday. However, Rea Vaya remained suspended after a meeting between the City of Joburg and the SA Municipal Workers' Union (Samwu) on Wednesday morning proved fruitless. Transport MMC Kenny Kunene claimed that Samwu was to blame for the stalling of operations, while Samwu’s Lebo Ndawo blamed the City for not keeping its drivers safe. Kunene said the Joburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) had briefed 110 officers in 80 vehicles who were waiting to escort buses to and from their destinations. Therefore he did not understand why Samwu would tell its drivers not to return to work. Ndawo noted that there was a unit in JMPD that was supposed to accompany the buses, but alleged that there was no fleet for the officers to use. He further alleged that drivers had been warned through an anonymous message that they would not be safe if they returned to work. Ndawo said the union was always available should the City want to resume talks. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Alex Patrick at News24 (subscription or trial registration required) Read too, Rea Vaya drivers ‘live in fear’ and demand long-term safety plan, at The Citizen City of Tshwane impounds three 'Afrikaans Uber' Wanatu vehicles for operating without permits TimesLIVE reports that Tshwane metro police impounded three of "Afrikaans" e-hailing service Wanatu's vehicles on Wednesday for operating without permits. The came after Build One SA's Ayanda Allie shared a video on X asking whether Wanatu had operating permits from the municipality, as Uber, Bolt and inDrive vehicles were frequently impounded for not having permits. Tshwane mayor Nasiphi Moya took to X to announce the impounding and wrote: “We do not discriminate when enforcing bylaws in Tshwane”. According to Tshwane metro police spokesperson Isaac Mahamba, the three Wanatu vehicles were impounded during random operations. “We spotted these ones, we did not target Wanatu vehicles,” he claimed. In a SMS sent to all registered Wanatu customers, the e-hailing service said: "Wanatu service is temporarily suspended due to the illegal actions of the TMPD by illegally impounding our vehicles and intimidation of our drivers. We're going to court!" Wanatu recently caused a stir for its alleged Afrikaans-only policy, which some have scrutinised for possibly violating labour laws for only employing Afrikaans-speaking drivers. TimesLIVE took a trip with the new e-hailing service and found it did not discriminate, with its drivers communicating in English, while the app has an English version. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Rorisang Kgosana at TimesLIVE. Lees ook, Wanatu oorweeg regstappe oor skut van voertuie, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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