Today's Labour News

newsThis 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.

numANA reports that the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) on Thursday called for a total shutdown of state-owned power utility Eskom, following a collapse in wage negotiations.  

ambulanceNews24 reports that a group of volunteer paramedics were robbed at gun and knife point in the early hours of Saturday morning while attending to patients in Du Noon, Cape Town.  

vwCity Press reports that another components supplier is closing down in the Eastern Cape, leaving more than 150 workers jobless as its contract with Volkswagen SA (VWSA) has been terminated.  

labourcourtsMail & Guardian reports that the appeal panel of the Judicial Conduct Committee (JCC) has ordered a probe into the behaviour of a Labour Court judge accused of misconduct in his handling of a dispute.  

harmonyMining Weekly reports that an employee has been killed in a fall-of-ground incident at Harmony Gold's Bambanani mine, in the Free State.  

PSCBCFin24 reports that a majority of trade unions have signed the public sector wage agreement, meaning that it will be implemented.  

npaBusinessLive reports that former acting police commissioner Khomotso Phahlane is not off the hook despite the withdrawal of fraud and corruption charges against him on Thursday.  

sabcTimeslive reports that former SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s application for leave to appeal against a decision that he must personally pay for the legal costs associated with a ban on coverage of protest action has been dismissed with costs.  

saa thumb medium95 76BusinessLive reports that SA Airways (SAA) CEO Vuyani Jarana said in Parliament on Thursday that staff rationalisation at the state-owned carrier was a necessity.  

samwu thumb medium80 78BusinessLive reports that wage negotiations at the SA Local Government Bargaining Council have reached a deadlock after the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) formally declared a dispute on Thursday.  

handshake thumb medium90 90GroundUp reports that workers in the Sundays River Valley in the Eastern Cape called off their strike on Thursday after reaching an agreement with their employers.  

news shutterstockIn our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Thursday, 7 June 2018.

sapsNews24 reports that police officer Captain JM Henrico made his first appearance in the Pretoria Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, facing a charge of crimen injuria after allegedly calling his subordinates the k-word.  

gavel thumb100 News24 reports that former acting national police commissioner Khomotso Phahlane is no longer an accused in a fraud, money laundering and corruption case.  

newsMining Weekly reports that mining analyst David van Wyk points out that, as industrial mining for gold declines, artisanal mining for gold in abandoned, ownerless and derelict mines will increase, making way for artisanal miners to mine abandoned shafts.  

SaftuThe Citizen reports that the SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) is set to flex its muscles again and mobilise millions to hit the streets, this time over the outsourcing of municipal workers.  

newsANA reports that hundreds of artisanal and illegal miners in Kimberley in the Northern Cape were due on Thursday to receive mining permits from the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR).  

eskomBusinessLive reports that cash-strapped power utility Eskom is heading for a showdown with unions in the second round of wage talks as it sticks to its stance of no pay increases.  

PSCBCFin24 reports that the public sector wage agreement is close to being a done deal, with 48% of workers represented by trade unions at the Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) supporting the government’s offer.  

protestNews24 reports that at least three tractors and two citrus storehouses have been destroyed as protest action by hundreds of citrus farmworkers in the Addo area, in the Eastern Cape, turned violent.  

metrorail thumb medium90 92Engineering News reports that Gautrain Management Agency CEO Jack van der Merwe told the Competition Commission’s land-based public passenger transport inquiry on Wednesday that Metrorail did not currently run “where the people are”.  

BureauVeritasBusinessLive reports that Bureau Veritas has launched the Ithemba Trust to educate disadvantaged young black women in rural areas as engineers.  

UguBusinessLive reports that Ugu district municipality has opened seven cases of sabotage after striking workers tampered with the water system, resulting in tourism ventures, local businesses and residents going for days without water.  

strike thumb medium85 85BusinessLive reports that Johannesburg’s Metrobus service has been struggling since Tuesday to transport thousands of commuters in the city due to a strike by the Democratic Municipal & Allied Workers Union of SA (Demawusa).  

MotsoalediBusinessLive reports that Cosatu has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to fire Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, saying the public health system has collapsed on his watch.  

eskomBloomberg reports that state-owned power utility Eskom has kept its nil pay offer to workers unchanged in a second round of wage talks.  

news shutterstockIn our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Wednesday, 6 June 2018.

gavel thumb100 Timeslive reports that a police captain was due to go on trial in the Pretoria Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday for allegedly being racist towards his colleagues.  

MotsoalediBusinessLive reports that as Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi on Tuesday moved to assure that the state health services were not falling apart, a report cataloging a shocking series of failings in the public health sector was tabled in Parliament.  

CapeTownlogoEWN reports that the City of Cape Town has set aside R45 million to appoint more metro police and traffic officials.  The safety and security directorate has been allocated more than R110 million under the terms of the city's 2018/2019 budget.