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.
Solidarity heads to court to have state of disaster to deal with electricity crisis declared unlawful
- Details
News24 reports that Solidarity is going to court to launch a legal challenge to the declaration of a state of disaster to deal with the electricity crisis.
Sugar association rejects any sugar tax increase, warns of job losses
- Details
BL Premium reports that ahead of the upcoming budget speech, the SA Sugar Association (Sasa) has called on the government to halt any increase or expansion of the sugar tax, saying it needed time to research and implement its diversification strategy under which sugar cane would be used for a wide range of applications outside refined sugar.
Msunduzi outlines plans to ensure the safety of municipal employees
- Details
The Witness reports that following a surge in attacks on municipal employees while on duty, Msunduzi Municipality’s security team has begun escorting employees to work sites.
Randall Williams presided over collapse of Tshwane’s finances, says Samwu
- Details
BL Premium reports that the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) has welcomed the resignation of DA councillor Randall Williams as Tshwane’s executive mayor, saying he presided over the collapse of the metro’s finances.
CWU calls for cash injection for ailing Post Office
- Details
TimesLive reports that the Communication Workers Union (CWU) has called on the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies and the National Treasury to meet to discuss financial assistance for the ailing SA Post Office (SAPO).
State of disaster declared over flooding as forecasters warn of more downpours, strain on rescuers
- Details
News24 reports that the government has declared another national state of disaster, this time in response to widespread flooding across the country – with forecasters warning that persistent and heavy rains this week could put a prolonged strain on rescue teams.
Morning roundup of labour news on Tuesday, 14 February 2023
- Details
In our Tuesday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
Camps closed and staff evacuated as Kruger National Park expects more rainfall
- Details
IOL reports that SA National Parks (SANParks), the body responsible for the upkeep of parks, including the Kruger National Park (KNP), has announced that park management has temporarily closed some remote camps and evacuated staff to nearer, safer camps following flooding in Mpumalanga.
Electricity minister just 'a project manager', says Gwede Mantashe
- Details
Sunday Times reports that ANC leaders were caught off guard by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s appointment of an electricity minister in his state of the nation address on Thursday.
Back up Sona promises with action and funding, labour federations urge Ramaphosa
- Details
BL Premium reports that labour federations commented on Friday that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state of the nation address (Sona) was uninspiring and lacked a detailed plan to take the economy out of the “depressing situation” it which it found itself.
SA faces large exodus of Zimbabweans as expiry date for ZEP permit looms
- Details
Cape Argus reports that SA, which was once looked upon as a place of refuge and possible safe haven for Zimbabwean nationals, is gearing up for what is expected to be one of the largest exoduses this year of Zimbabweans.
Police corruption remains a 'serious problem' despite decreasing cases, say experts
- Details
News24 reports that according to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID), there was an 11% decrease in police corruption cases last year, but experts say that corruption remains a serious problem within the SA Police Service (SAPS).
People who are not disabled got disability grant due to fraud by doctor and SASSA official
- Details
IOL reports that the Hawks serious corruption investigation members have arrested 15 suspects aged between 28 and 58 in connection with disability grant fraud at the SA Social Security Agency (Sassa).
Roundup on Monday, 13 February 2023 of weekend labour reports
- Details
In our roundup of weekend news, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related stories that appeared since
Friday, 10 February 2023.
Ten years in jail for KZN cop who offered to release female suspect in exchange for sex, but then failed to do so
- Details
IOL reports that a 43-year-old police sergeant who demanded sex and promised to release a 32-year-old woman who had been arrested for shoplifting, but failed to release her, has been sentenced to an effective 10 years in jail for rape.
‘Critical’ shortage of artisans in South Africa
- Details
The Witness writes that there’s a shortage of a number of scarce skills in South Africa, with one of the areas most affected being artisans.
SA Post Office pushing ahead with plans to retrench 6 000 workers, CWU says
- Details
Fin24 reports that according to the Communication Workers Union (CWU), the SA Post Office (SAPO) is going ahead with plans to retrench 6,000 workers.
North West police captain arrested for alleged theft of diesel from a police vehicle
- Details
IOL reports that a North West police captain has been arrested for allegedly stealing diesel in Brits. Captain Juan Oosthuizen was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly siphoning diesel from a police vehicle.
Two KZN paramedics robbed at gunpoint while responding to call for help in Shongweni
- Details
IOL reports that KwaNdengezi SAPS are investigating a case of robbery following an incident in which a 38-year-old ambulance driver and his 42-year-old colleague were allegedly robbed of their belongings and work equipment at Shongweni.
Transport union Untu wants Prasa to be held in contempt of court over failure to honour wage agreement
- Details
EWN reports that the United National Transport Union (Untu) has applied to the Labour Court to have the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) held in contempt of court after the state-owned company failed to pay backdated salary increases to some of its workers for the 2021/22 financial year.
University of Venda suspends staff member for soliciting bribes from students for admission
- Details
TimesLive reports that the University of Venda (Univen) has suspended a staff member for allegedly soliciting bribes from prospective students in exchange for admission.
Solidarity announces legal action against state of disaster to deal with energy crisis
- Details
In a press statement following President Ramaphosa’s announcement in his state of the nation address on Thursday night, trade union Solidarity indicated that it would be instituting legal against the declaration of a national state of disaster to deal with the energy crisis.
Morning roundup of labour news on Friday, 10 February 2023
- Details
In our Friday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
Two Limpopo police officers arrested for ‘selling docket’ for R15,000
- Details
SowetanLive reports that two police officers from Sekgosese, Limpopo, have been arrested for allegedly attempting to solicit money in exchange for cancelling a case docket.
Schools must be ‘havens of safety' instead of 'centres of violence', says teachers' union Sadtu
- Details
EWN reports that the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) is concerned about the increasing incidents of violence at schools across the country since the beginning of the 2023 academic year.
Unbundling Eskom is taking far too long, says CEO André de Ruyter
- Details
BL Premium reports that according to Eskom CEO André de Ruyter, the state-owned power utility sent the government a list of potential board members for a national transmission company a year ago, but is still waiting for them to be appointed.
SA Tourism in hunt to find Tottenham deal whistleblower, Sisulu wants interim CFO gone
- Details
News24 reports that SA Tourism is to launch an investigation to find the person who blew the whistle on its proposed sponsorship deal with Tottenham Hotspur.
ConCourt declines to hear government’s appeal over use of B-BBEE criteria in tourism relief grants
- Details
Fin24 reports that the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) has declined to hear an application for leave to appeal a lower court's ruling that found the state was wrong to include Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE) as a criterion to access Covid-19 relief grants in the tourism sector.
Mpumalanga police officer and three others arrested when caught red-handed loading stolen railway tracks into truck
- Details
IOL reports that a 32-year-old police constable and three other suspects aged between 38 and 43 were arrested in Mpumalanga after they were allegedly caught red-handed by security personnel loading railway tracks into a heavy truck.
Morning roundup of labour news on Thursday, 9 February 2023
- Details
In our Thursday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.