In our roundup of weekend and recent reports,
see the following summaries of our selection of
South African labour-related articles.
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FlySafair’s pilots who are members of Solidarity reject latest offer and will continue striking BL Premium reports that pilots who are members of trade union Solidarity will continue their strike at FlySafair after rejecting the latest offer from the airline at the weekend. Details of the offer tabled by FlySafair on Saturday remain confidential, but Solidarity said disagreements over the company’s three-year pay offer and shift rostering system remained unresolved. In February FlySafair replaced its fixed scheduling system, which provided pilots with a predictable roster over an extended period, with one that generated a new schedule monthly. “The salary increase is important, but the fatigue-related and quality of life issues are the most important matters,” said Solidarity general secretary Gideon Du Plessis. Pilots want a guarantee of one weekend off per month, and greater certainty about upcoming shifts so they can plan their personal lives. A total 220 of the 300 pilots employed by FlySafair are members of Solidarity, while the rest are not unionised. By 5pm on Sunday, 90% of the pilots who belong to Solidarity had voted on the company’s latest offer, and 90% of them had rejected it and had mandated the union to continue the strike, said Du Plessis. He accused the airline of trying to intimidate both striking and nonstriking pilots, and of misleading the public about pilot salary scales and working hours. FlySafair said it would continue to operate a reduced flight schedule this week. About a third of FlySafair’s pilots are reportedly on strike, and the airline is carrying about 30% fewer passengers than usual. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Lees ook, FlySafair se finale skikkingsaanbod verwerp, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Seta rot runs deep, with hundreds of millions of rands lost with little consequence Sunday Times reports that hundreds of millions of rands are going down the drain due to the shortcomings of sector education & training authorities (Setas). They include overpayments, failure to meet targets and conflicts of interest on the part of board members. Meant to address skills shortages and improve the overall quality of education and training in SA, these entities have been riddled with corruption and maladministration, with poor accountability systems leading to millions being spent with little to show. The last audited financial statements, for financial 2024, show dire problems of irregular expenditure amounting to more than R700m for that year and the previous year. Shortly before her axing last week, former Higher Education & Training Minister Nobuhle Nkabane said measures had been put in place to strengthen the monitoring and evaluation of Setas, including quarterly performance reviews and ad hoc performance assessment review sessions with the audit and risk committees. According to Wayne Duvenage of Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse, a quick way to address maladministration, corruption and poor governance in Setas would be the appointment of “strong, apolitical and experienced board chairpersons and members”. Duvenage said political patronage and the deliberate appointment of connected cadres was to blame for the way Setas had become riddled with corruption and maladministration. Prof Alex van den Heever of Wits University School of Governance said the corruption in Setas flowed directly from “the corporate governance designs, embedded in statute, that expose them to capture via the executive of government”. He pointed out that the Seta system was vulnerable to substantial patronage directed through the political party that appointed the minister of higher education. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Isaac Mahlangu at Sunday Times (subscriber access only) Uproar as armed cops evict acting HR executive from Ceta offices Sunday Times reports that there was high drama at the Construction Education & Training Authority (Ceta) headquarters in Midrand last week when acting human resources executive Brian Tyebileyo was fired and then frogmarched out by armed police as part of an apparent whistleblower hunt. Tyebileyo has spoken out within Ceta about alleged breaches in governance and meddling in his unit by CEO Malusi Shezi. In several videos shared by Ceta employees, two police officers, one carrying a rifle, are seen and heard engaging with staff in the Ceta office last Monday. In one video, a police officer intervenes in a loud exchange involving the Ceta executive for education, training and quality assurance, Lebogang Phasha. Tyebileyo’s dismissal came as the Auditor-General’s (AG’s) office flagged various incidents, including procurement and appointments, in the past financial year. One of them was Phasha’s appointment, which was allegedly made despite him not meeting the minimum requirements for the position. Phasha, who also acts as the institution’s spokesperson, is believed to have summoned the police. “Everyone is fearful at the moment because, besides Brian’s dismissal, we were told that a number of people had their devices taken and subjected to forensic digging because Shezi wants to uncover who has been speaking with the media. Right now the environment is as toxic as it ever was,” one source said. Shezi on Friday filed a defamation case against the Sunday Times and its journalist Sabelo Skiti. At the heart of Shezi’s unhappiness are several articles published in June and July that reveal irregularities at Ceta during his tenure, as well as several instances where information he shared with parliament has been contradicted by facts. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sabelo Skiti at Sunday Times (subscriber access only) How Nobuhle Nkabane sat on her hands despite LGSeta red flag Sunday Times reports that Finance Mnister Enoch Godongwana warned his now disgraced cabinet colleague Nobuhle Nkabane about malfeasance at the local government sector education & training authority (LGSeta) three months ago – but she ignored the warning until last week. Godongwana told the former minister of higher education in April that the process to appoint the CEO of the LGSeta, Ineeleng Molete, was beset with irregularities and possible criminal conduct. The information had come to light during an investigation by the Treasury’s specialised audit services following a tip-off from a whistleblower. If true, all remuneration earned by Molete since his appointment would amount to irregular expenditure. According to a reply to a parliamentary question in January 2023, the CEO of the LGSeta earned R2.5m a year. Molete was appointed in January 2021, so his income since then could amount to at least R11m. In his letter, Godongwana told Nkabane that the Treasury had also uncovered irregularities in the dissolution of the LGSeta’s audit & risk committee by the board. But Nkabane only wrote back to Godongwana, asking for a copy of the investigation report, last Monday, hours before President Cyril Ramaphosa announced her axing. The LGSeta develops and implements training and development for municipal employees, the unemployed, ward councillors and traditional leaders working within the structures of local government. Historically, the LGSeta has been marred by systemic corruption, maladministration and governance failures. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Isanda Mbolekwa & Sabelo Skiti at Sunday Times (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
SA cruise ship worker dies after allegedly stabbing girlfriend and jumping overboard News24 reports that a South African crew member aboard Royal Caribbean’s Icon of the Seas cruise ship died after he allegedly stabbed a woman, also South African, and then jumped overboard. The woman is believed to be his girlfriend and co-worker. The incident unfolded on Thursday evening as the ship sailed through the Bahamas. The 35-year-old man reportedly became enraged after seeing the 28-year-old woman with another male colleague. According to a witness on board, the man stabbed her multiple times. The woman survived the attack and is currently in a stable condition. The “Oscar” emergency code, used to signal a person overboard, was broadcast around 19:00 local time, prompting an immediate rescue operation. Video footage shared on TikTok shows rescue crews attempting to save the man and performing resuscitation efforts on deck. However, he was declared dead shortly after being recovered from the water. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Velani Ludidi at News24 (subscription / trial registration required). Lees ook, SA bemanningslid spring oorboord ná mesvoorval, by Maroela Media Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Prasa and unions sign above-inflation 5.5% one-year wage deal BL Premium reports that the two largest unions at the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa), namely the United National Transport Union (Untu) and the SA Transport and Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu), have accepted the rail operator’s final wage offer of 5.5% for 2025/26 after a mandate-seeking process yielded positive results. Untu’s Atenkosi Plaatjie said the wage deal reached on Thursday included a no-retrenchment clause. Plaatjie went on to indicate: “The salary increase will be implemented and effective on the August payroll run. Back payment for the period, April 1 2025 to July 31 2025 will be paid in a one-off lump sum at the end of September 2025.” Satawu and Untu’s consolidated wage demands had included a 15% across-the-board wage increase. The unions had also demanded a R3,000 housing subsidy, a standby allowance of R50/hour, a night shift allowance of R10/hour, a moratorium on retrenchments and a medical aid subsidy, with the employer contributing 70%. Satawu’s Amanda Tshemese said after a lengthy and difficult mandatory process “our members have mandated us to accept the offer on the basis that workers will be back paid in lump sum” and added: “We wish to assure our members that the outstanding demands such as night shift allowance and standby allowance will be discussed in the bargaining forum.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Read too, Prasa workers agree to 5.5% wage hike after ‘difficult’ talks, at News24 (subscription / trial registration required)
Huge delays on the part of Tshiamiso Trust in payouts to miners with silicosis and TB GroundUp reports that housands of claimants are losing hope they will ever be compensated by the Tshiamiso Trust, which was established to pay out claims following a R5-billion silicosis and TB class action settlement in May 2018. Six mining companies (covering 82 mines) are party to the settlement, namely African Rainbow Minerals, Anglo American, AngloGold Ashanti, Gold Fields, Harmony and Sibanye-Stillwater. Ex-miners who worked between March 1965 and December 2019 and suffered lung impairment due to TB or silicosis from exposure to dust and chemicals may qualify for compensation. The latest update on the trust’s dashboard reflects that out of 147,702 claims, only 23,356 claimants had been compensated, with payouts of about R2.1-billion. The dashboard shows that 385,551 people have registered with the trust with the intention to claim, and 176,846 have made appointments to have their claims processed. Justice for Miners (JFM), an advocacy group of ex-mine workers affected by TB and silicosis, says their offices across Southern Africa have been inundated by complaints from claimants who have not been paid compensation. JFM says the approximately 23,000 miners paid by Tshiamiso Trust to date is a drop in the ocean compared to about 500,000 potential claimants across South Africa and neighbouring countries such as Lesotho, Eswatini, Mozambique, Malawi and Zimbabwe. Lusanda Jiya, spokesperson for the trust, explained that delays had arisen because the trust was awaiting a decision on whether post-mortem reports could be used to determine the primary cause of death as Silicosis or TB. “Some parties to the settlement agreement do not deem this as sufficient evidence of silicosis or TB being the primary cause of death. We continue to work with the relevant parties to resolve the matter,” she said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Sipokazi Fokazi at GroundUp Retrenched Crocodile River Mine workers still waiting 10 years later for provident fund payouts Business Times reports that former employees of Eastern Platinum’s Crocodile River Mine are still waiting for their unclaimed provident fund benefits 10 years after they were retrenched. The mine in Brits was placed on care and maintenance in 2013, due to a combination of falling metal prices and a low global outlook. Labour lawyer Tommy Bangani, who represents more than 150 employees retrenched in 2013, blamed Alexforbes for dragging its feet in making the payouts. “For the past six months, we’ve been trying to get the Fund Administrator [Alexforbes] to pay out the provident fund benefits of the retrenched former employees and/or their beneficiaries and dependents without any success,” he claimed. When Bangani contacted Alexforbes on behalf of the former workers, it appointed a tracing company to contact the workers directly, “so that they can pay them the minimum benefits offered by the administrator of the provident fund”. Bangani said the employees had been dealt a double blow since they were denied their provident fund benefits, and a promise to re-employ them did not materialise. Alexforbes advised: “As of July 11 2025, there are 623 unclaimed benefits linked to the terminating Barplats Provident fund still payable, valued at approximately R4.6m.” The company said it was still trying to trace the beneficiaries. “To release provident fund benefits to unclaimed members, Alexforbes requires relevant supporting documents, a fully completed claim form, proof of company employment, or fund membership to be submitted for reviewing and processing; provided all the requirements are met,” the company indicated. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Dineo Faku at Business Times (subscriber access only)
Court rules that a foreign national without a work visa cannot be summarily dismissed IOL News reports that foreign national employees must be provided with proper notice of termination of their employment in line with the Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA) and failure to provide such notice may result in the termination being unlawful. This is the warning of employment law experts at Cliffe Dekker Hofmeyr (CDH), following a recent Eastern Cape High Court judgment relating to a research assistant and Zimbabwean national, Samuel Nyakudya. He was granted a temporary residence permit allowing him to reside in SA and seek employment in the category of general work. Nyakudya was then employed by the OR Tambo District Municipality on successive fixed-term contracts. During his employment, Nyakudya was not consistently in possession of a work visa. In November 2023, the municipality notified him that his contract had expired. The municipality claimed it had had no choice but to terminate his employment immediately, citing the unlawful nature of his contract due to the expiration of his work visa. But, the court ruled that employing a foreign national without a work visa did not automatically grant an employer the right to summarily terminate the employment contract. Commenting on the case, CDH said that this area of termination had just become a lot clearer for employers after the ruling. “This case serves as a significant reminder that employing a foreign national without a work visa does not automatically grant an employer the right to terminate the employment contract summarily,” CDH warned. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Zelda Venter at IOL News
SA military revives controversial Cuban technician deal for vehicle maintenance. City Press reports that despite past challenges with contracts involving Cuba, the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) is determined to proceed with a new plan to use Cuban technicians for vehicle maintenance. According to previous findings by the Auditor-General (AG), the SANDF had recorded irregular contracts with Cuba worth about R1.7 billion. A similar prior agreement relating to Cuban mechanics, called Project Thusano, will now be revived in a new form as Project Kgala. In a presentation to the joint parliamentary defence committee, the military revealed that Thusano had cost them R3 billion over 10 years. The new ‘cost-saving’ five-year contract is estimated to be worth R537 million. However, Thusano also had optimistic financial projections, yet ultimately resulted in significant additional expenses. Neither the first nor the second Thusano contracts complied with Treasury regulations. The AG found that repairing vehicles through the Cubans had cost the SANDF nearly four times more than if SA’s local industry had handled the repairs. But, Defence Minister Angie Motshekga insisted that Thusano had not been a failure, arguing that local industries had failed to adequately maintain prime mission vehicles, leaving the military stranded with broken equipment and a loss of expertise. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Erika Gibson at City Press (subscription / trial registration required)
No state contribution holiday, insists Government Employees Pension Fund Business Times reports that the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) has dismissed calls for a pension contribution holiday with the aim of directing the money instead to boosting state coffers. The fund manages R2.3-trillion in assets on behalf of 1.2-million state employees. GEPF chair Frans Baleni told journalists at a round-table on Thursday that the retirement fund had been approached by the Treasury to investigate the feasibility of such a contribution break, but it warned of the dangers of such a proposal. “An enquiry was made to us by National Treasury, and we did look into the matter. First, it is not possible for a zero-contribution pause. That said, we were able to indicate that there’s a possibility of a percentage reduction of [a particular amount]; anything above that would be detrimental to the fund,” Baleni indicated. Earlier this year at the height of the budget impasse, labour federation Cosatu had urged the Treasury to initiate discussions with the fund in a bid to raise about R53bn through withholding the employer portion of pension payments for a year. “Right now the GEPF is funded at 110% of its capacity, which means that it can afford for everybody to retire tomorrow, not receive another contribution and still have change. So it’s overfunded and, look, you can’t do it forever but there is space to have a one-year contribution holiday – that’s R53bn,” said Cosatu’s Matthew Parks in February. Baleni also said with regards to the performance of the GEPF’s investments managed by the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) that the listed entities were doing well. “Overall, it is 96% performing; it is only 4% of the unlisted investments where we’re experiencing underperformance. We’re not taking it lightly,” he said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Dineo Faku at Business Times (subscriber access only) GEPF concerned about mismanagement allegations at GPAA amid tech challenges Business Report writes that the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) has sounded the alarm on potential reputational risks stemming from serious allegations of maladministration and financial mismanagement at the Government Pensions Administration Agency (GPAA). The GPAA, which is a government entity that reports to the Minister of Finance, has been rocked by allegations of serious financial mismanagement of pension funds amounting to more than R500 million. An internal audit report compiled by Abacwaningi Business Solution (ABS) Audit & Advisory Services found a raft of key governance concerns, which they brought to the attention of management to ensure sound governance. The Public Service and Commercial Union of SA (PSCU) then accused the GPAA CEO, Kedibone Madiehe, and other supply chain executives of maladministration and financial misconduct related to the award of contracts, an inflated purchase order for lease and prepayment for undelivered uniforms. Speaking during a media roundtable on Thursday, GEPF principal executive officer, Musa Mabesa, said they were aware of the allegations of mismanagement indicated by the PSCU. “The allegations that have been leveled against the GPAA, we have flagged those and have also indicated to National Treasury and the ministry to look into those as our relationship is fairly contractual. But they remain a concern to the Fund as that does not paint a good picture, especially in the midst of the challenges with the delays in payment of benefits,” Mabesa said. He also pointed to serious technological challenges at the GPAA, saying the organisation was working on outdated systems. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Siphelele Dludla at Business Report Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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