News24 reports that fed up with what they describe as “tyranny”, at least 100 former National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) members have formed a breakaway union.

The National Democratic and Servant Workers Union (Ndaswu) was founded after a meeting in Tshwane over the past weekend.   One of the founding members, Zolani Masoleng, said a mass recruitment drive was in full swing in the Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng and Mpumalanga. According to Masoleng, some 1,000 members had been signed up in the first week. He indicated that one of the reasons that had prompted members to break away was that Nehawu no longer represented the needs and aspirations of its members. “Nehawu is no longer controlled by its members. There is a top-down approach. It has become painfully clear that Nehawu no longer represents the needs, priorities, and aspirations of a significant portion of its membership,” Masoleng claimed. Other reasons for cutting ties included a leadership deficit, alleged financial mismanagement, ineffective representation, neglect of sector-specific issues and a failure to support members. Masoleng said the new union would fill in gaps where Nehawu had no reach, including the private health sector, parastatals, higher education and artificial-intelligence based sectors.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Siyamtanda Capa at News24 (subscription / trial registration required)

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