Today's Labour News
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.
Health workers gear up for day of protest in Limpopo on Wednesday
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ANA reports that health workers in Limpopo are gearing up for a day of labour action on Wednesday when they will down tools and march to government offices to raise a number of grievances.
Tshwane bus strike chaos continues on Tuesday with blocked roads and traffic mayhem
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TimesLIVE reports that Tshwane traffic remained congested on Tuesday due to the continued municipal workers' strike. The strike started on Thursday, but after negotiations between the union and council reached a deadlock, the strike intensified on Monday morning.
Solidarity taking legal action after Denel's battle to pay staff salaries
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Fin24 reports that trade union Solidarity announced on Monday that it would serve state-owned arms manufacturer Denel with court papers on Wednesday and announce further legal action thereafter.
SA’s population swells to over 58-million, as Stats SA warns about prospects for youth
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BusinessLive reports that Statistics SA indicated on Monday in its 2019 midyear population estimates that there are about 58.78-million people living in SA today.
Unemployment rate rises to 29%, reaching highest level in more than a decade
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Reuters reports that SA’s second quarter unemployment rate rose to 29.0%, its highest level in more than a decade, from 27.6% in the first quarter.
Burst water pipe floods trench, killing worker in Despatch on Monday
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HeraldLive reports that a man was killed while another three managed to escape when the water pipe they were fixing burst and caused the trench in which they were working to fill up, with one of the workers stuck inside.
Amcu slams Harmony Gold for high fatality rate
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Business Report writes that the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) has called on the government to turn up the heat on Harmony Gold where seven mineworkers have died at the company’s SA operations so far this year.
Eskom Board chairman Jabu Mabuza steps in as acting Eskom CEO
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BusinessLive reports that Eskom board chair Jabu Mabuza will take up the role of acting CEO of the troubled state-owned entity for the next three months, public enterprise minister Pravin Gordhan advised on Monday.
Crippling Tshwane strike to intensify if no wage deal is reached by Tuesday, says defiant Samwu
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BusinessLive reports that the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) has vowed to intensify its crippling industrial action in Tshwane, which saw the entire CBD gridlocked on Monday, should the employer not table a revised wage offer by Tuesday.
Landmark gold mining silicosis settlement could exceed R5bn
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BL Premium reports that six of SA’s biggest gold mining companies could be liable to pay victims of silicosis more than the R5bn specified in a settlement approved by the High Court in Johannesburg.
Afternoon roundup of labour news on Monday, 29 July 2019
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In our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Monday, 29 July 2019.
Dubai investment company and Nehawu consider teaming up to bid for Gupta coal-mining assets
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Bloomberg News reports that Dubai’s DSA Investments is considering forming a venture with the National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) to bid for coal assets that Glencore was pressured into selling to a company controlled by the politically-connected Gupta family in 2015.
New investments in Coega SEZ in Nelson Mandela Bay to create more than 2,000 jobs
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Fin24 reports that a total of R2.6bn new investments have been signed at the Coega Special Economic Zone, with expectations that they would create more than 2,000 jobs.
SAA must be placed under business rescue to protect taxpayer money, says Solidarity
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TimesLIVE reports that an application for the business rescue of South African Airways (SAA) is to be brought by the Solidarity Network, as part of a tax protest campaign that the civic organisation is launching.
Firefighters hospitalised as blaze leaves shacks gutted in Cape Town
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TimesLIVE reports that three injured firefighters were taken to hospital for treatment after responding to a fire that gutted dozens of shacks overnight in Masiphumelele, Cape Town.
Buses block off Pretoria CBD on Monday amid pay dispute
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TimesLIVE reports that buses caused havoc in the Pretoria CBD on Monday morning as some City of Tshwane employees went on strike demanding 18% salary increases.
PSA concerned about Public Protector's 'hypocritical' probe into HR processes at Sars and Kieswetter’s appointment
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ANA reports that the Public Servants Association (PSA) has expressed concern about reported investigations by the Public Protector, Busisiwe Mkhwebane, into SA Revenue Service (Sars) human resources processes and the appointment of new Sars commissioner Edward Kieswetter.
More than 100 Amazon Web Services jobs available to South Africans
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Business Report writes that Amazon Web Services (AWS) is slowly expanding their footprint in South Africa and Cape Town is going to be home to an AWS infrastructure that should be operational by early 2020.
Survey shows that SA employees have itchy feet
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The Mercury reports that the results of a recent global research study found that SA has the highest rate of employees who are open to leaving and actively planning to leave their current employment.
Telkom CE Sipho Maseko takes a pay cut despite healthy growth in company revenue
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Business Report writes that telecoms company Telkom paid group chief executive Sipho Maseko 14.7% less pay in the year ended March 2019 compared to a year earlier, as fewer shares were vested to him in the year under review.
Roundup on Monday, 29 July 2019 of weekend labour reports
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In our roundup of weekend news, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related stories that appeared since
Friday, 26 July 2019.
Treasury’s DG wants state employees to take a 10% salary cut to plug gaping fiscal hole
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City Press reports that the stern warning of National Treasury’s director-general, Dondo Mogajane is that SA’s finances are in serious trouble, and the best way to plug the gaping hole in the fiscus may be for all state employees to take a 10% cut in salaries and wages.
Low turnout for Metrorail strike and protests on Friday
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GroundUp reports that the turnout was low for Friday’s one day strike and countrywide protests called by the United National Transport Union (Untu) and its umbrella organisation, the Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa).
Department of employment and labour to hire 500 new occupational health and safety inspectors
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ANA reports that the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) advised last week that about 500 occupational health and safety (OHS) inspectors were to be hired.
Court approves historic R5bn settlement in gold mining silicosis saga
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News24Wire reports that the South Gauteng High Court has approved the historic R5-billion settlement agreement in the lengthy silicosis case.
Miner killed at Harmony Gold's Tshepong mine on Thursday
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News24 reports that a mineworker was killed on Thursday morning in a fall of ground incident at Harmony Gold's Tshepong mine near Welkom.
Employment and Labour Minister won’t sideline worker’s rights to pursue an ‘any jobs’ approach
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Mail & Guardian reports that with his department’s focus shifted towards job creation, newly-appointed Employment and Labour Minister Thulas Nxesi says he will not risk sidelining worker’s rights to create more work.
March by firefighters on Friday in Johannesburg CBD following attacks on EMS crews
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News24 reports that City of Johannesburg firefighters marched in the inner city on Friday to raise awareness about a recent spate of attacks on Emergency Management Services (EMS) personnel.
Supporters of suspended eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede turn to court to get her reinstated
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Sunday Tribune reports a group of African National Congress (ANC) members are taking the party to court demanding the reinstatement of eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede.
Nedbank in talks about 1,500 possible job cuts at its retail and business-banking division
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Bloomberg reports that the Nedbank Group is in talks with about 1,500 employees over potential job cuts at the lender’s retail and business-banking division to cope with a struggling economy and increased competition.