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.
Cosatu leader explains fees protest at WFTU congress after Zuma ignores it
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News24 reports that, while President Jacob Zuma on Wednesday failed to mention the national crisis over tertiary education fees at the World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) Congress, Cosatu leader Sidumo Dlamini was more forthcoming on the matter.
Zuma urges workers at WFTU congress to keep fighting capitalism
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The Citizen reports that at the 17th World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU) congress on Wednesday, President Jacob Zuma cited the dangers of the capitalist system in his speech.
Solidarity Movement aims to bring universities back on track
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SABC News reports that the Solidarity Movement, which includes trade union Solidarity, on Wednesday announced a ten point plan to help bring universities back on track and have the academic year continued with.
Rapid transit bus petrol bombed and torched in Pretoria on Wednesday
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ANA reports that arsonists petrol bombed an A Re Yeng rapid transit bus in Pretoria on Wednesday, leaving four passengers and the driver injured. The bus was extensively damaged by the fire.
NUM member who was attacked at Sibanye's Cooke operation dies
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ANA reports that a National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) member who was attacked and severely assaulted at Sibanye’s Gold Cooke 2 operation, allegedly by Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) members, died on Wednesday morning.
Cosatu calls on workers to down tools and join its march on Friday
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IOL News reports that SA is expected to see one of its biggest strikes in recent years with Cosatu saying that it expects about 200,000 of its members to take to the streets on Friday to demand decent work.
Edcon to add more than 2,000 staff in hiring spree for retail stores
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Bloomberg reports that Edcon Holdings, owner of the Edgars and Jet chains, plans to increase its workforce by almost 7% and slash prices as SA’s largest clothing retailer kick-starts a recovery plan.
Amplats believes wage deal at its platinum mines ‘fairly close’
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Reuters reports that Chris Griffith, CEO of Anglo American Platinum (Amplats), said on Wednesday that wage talks with unions, including the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu) which is the majority union at the company’s Rustenburg mines, were "fairly close" to a deal.
Sibanye’s Cooke 4 operations back in business following union clashes
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Business Report writes that Sibanye Gold on Wednesday resumed its Cooke 4 operations following clashes between members of the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (Amcu), which left four miners injured.
Web links to selected labour news reports posted on 4 October 2016
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Our links page provides references to South African labour news reports we have come across on the Internet on Tuesday, 4 October 2016
Sibanye halts Cooke operations after employees injured in attack
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Mining Weekly reports that Sibanye Gold has halted operations at its Cooke mine, after four employees were injured in an attack by unknown assailants in the early hours of Tuesday morning. Two of the four employees were seriously injured and are being treated at local hospitals.
Fawu to boycott Cosatu march on Friday
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Business Report writes that the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu) says it will not take part in labour federation Cosatu’s national decent work march on Friday. The union said on Tuesday that, while it supported the need for decent work, it would save its “energy” for its own rolling mass action against the government’s neo-liberal policies.
ANC NEC says SABC board must review Motsoeneng appointment
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BDLive reports that ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe on Monday said the party’s national executive committee (NEC) had called on the SABC’s board to review the decision to appoint Hlaudi Motsoeneng. The ANC NEC also agreed on the need for a Parliamentary inquiry into the SABC board’s fitness to hold office‚ he told a media briefing.
Loss of new doctors entering health sector looms as fees protest continues
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BDLive writes that public hospitals will have 1,600 fewer doctors and the class of 2016 will miss out on graduation if the shutdown of universities continues. This is the grim reality that came out of a failed fees imbizo in Kempton Park on Monday, where President Jacob Zuma made an opening address but then rushed off to fulfil his other obligations.
Fawu threatens strike action if Agoa deal with US not reviewed
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EWN reports that the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu) has called on the Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob Davies, to review the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa) or risk having the union’s poultry workers go on strike. Fawu officials say employers in the poultry industry are considering the retrenchment of about 12,000 because of the increased cost of production.
Fedusa to form part of SA delegation at SA Tomorrow Investor Conference
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EWN reports that the Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa) was requested to attend the New York 2016 South Africa Tomorrow Investor Conference that will be held in New York on 4 and 5 October 2016. Minister of Finance Pravin Gordhan will lead the social partnership delegation consisting of the SA Reserve Bank Governor, a large number of business and labour leaders and the JSE to promote SA as an investor destination.
Relatives of Lily Mine trio are giving up hope
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Business Report writes that the families of three mineworkers trapped underground at Vantage Goldfields’ Lily Gold Mine near Barberton since February have given up hope of the retrieval of their relatives’ mortal remains. This comes after another attempt to retrieve their bodies by Mine Rescue Services revealed the 600m rescue shaft and the original ventilation shaft had deteriorated, making it unsafe to enter.
Northern Cape health department seeks interdict against Nehawu protestors
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Netwerk24 reports that on Tuesday afternoon the Department of Health in the Northern Cape will be challenging the National Education Health and Allied Workers' Union (Nehawu) with an urgent interdict application in the high court to halt any further disruptive conduct. This will follow the chaos that took place on Monday morning when protesting members of the union locked the gates to the Kimberley Hospital.
Nelson Mandela Bay official guarding refuse truck shot dead by robbers
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HeraldLive reports that a Nelson Mandela Bay municipal official was killed on Sunday in a shootout in Motherwell between robbers and a security escort assigned to protect refuse collection staff. A suspect was also shot dead. Detectives will be investigating whether the incident was linked to the ongoing feud between the municipality and refuse collectors over lunch and tea breaks, or if it was a robbery. The attack comes after municipal management applied to the Labour Court last week for an interdict against the refuse workers, who are reportedly on a go-slow.
DA and Cope call for Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s head
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The Citizen reports that the message delivered in the joint protest by the Democratic Alliance (DA) and Congress of the People (Cope) at the SA Broadcasting Corporation’s headquarters in Auckland Park on Monday morning was that Hlaudi Motsoeneng must go and the existing SABC board must be disbanded. Motsoeneng took up his new position as group executive for corporate affairs after the Supreme Court of Appeal terminated his intention to appeal a Western Cape High Court ruling thast found his appointment as COO to be “unlawful and irrational”.
Web links to selected labour news reports posted on 3 October 2016
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Our links page provides references to South African labour news reports we have come across on the Internet on Monday, 3 October 2016
Samwu gearing up for Cosatu’s national strike on 7 October
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ANA reports that the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) is mobilising its members to join Cosatu’s national one-day strike on Friday, 7 October 2016, during the International Day of Action. The labour federation will be demanding an outright ban on labour brokers, the scrapping of the e-tolling system and a concerted drive in defence of jobs and against retrenchments. Samwu will be demanding the end of casualisation of work, particularly in local government.
Nehawu demands response about health care crisis in Northern Cape
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The New Age reports that the National Health Education and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) was due to take its war against the crisis in health care in Limpopo to the premier’s office on Monday. It organised a march to demand a response to its memorandum handed over in February 2016 on the crisis in the province and expected 1,000 members to take part. Last Thursday, Nehawu picketed outside Kimberley hospital to remind management of its demands, among which was that the report of a corruption task team report be released.
Implats, NUM sign two-year wage deal ending strike at Springs refinery
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Mining Weekly reports that the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and Impala Platinum (Implats) have reached a two-year wage deal, effective July 2016 until June 2018, for workers at the company’s refinery in Springs.
Twenty-four women land jobs fixing Cape Town roads
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ANA reports that the City of Cape Town has rewarded 24 of its Women at Work Programme participants with permanent positions in its road maintenance division. They come from across the city metropole and are now part of Transport for Cape Town’s permanent staff. The women will assist road depots with the repair and maintenance of road and storm water infrastructure.
Shoprite doubles CEO Whitey Basson’s pay to R100.1 million with bonus
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Bloomberg reports that Shoprite Holdings doubled CEO Whitey Basson’s pay last fiscal year to R100.1 million, thanks to a bonus for beating a profit-growth target. His remuneration included R49.7 million in basic pay for the 12 months through June, in line with the previous year, and a R50 million one-time performance-related bonus. Trading profit growth of 15% beat an internal target of 11%.
Roundup of labour news on Monday, 3 October 2016
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In our Monday roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that have appeared since
midday on Friday, 30 September 2016.
SABC’s Hlaudi faces chop 'by end of the week'
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IOL News writes that Hlaudi Motsoeneng could be fired by the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) by the end of this week after a meeting of Parliament’s portfolio committee on communications. The committee took strong exception on Friday to the SABC board's defiance of the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) judgment and wants answers on the rehiring of Motsoeneng in a different position. The SABC board and its executive management will be meeting MPs on Wednesday over the reappointment of Motsoeneng.
Zwane’s promises of cash as hollow as Lily Mine’s mineshaft
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Sunday Independent writes that it has become abundantly clear that Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane will not be paying the monetary windfall he promised the disaster victims at Lily Mine on 5 February. Nothing has been paid so far as the minister seems to have dumped the hot potato in the lap of Lily Mine. But, this can only happen after Lily receives the R200 million it seeks to restart operations at the mine.
We’ll oppose the DA’s anti-worker plans, says Samwu in Tshwane
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TMG Digital reports that the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) says it will oppose plans by the City of Tshwane to terminate workers’ contracts. The union claimed Democratic Alliance (DA) mayors had received directives from the party’s federal executive to trim administrative staff and that these “anti-worker” plans “will leave thousands of workers out of jobs‚ with the City of Tshwane alone retrenching over 900 workers." Samwu will be monitoring all municipalities‚ and particularly those governed by the DA.