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.
Morning roundup of labour news on Tuesday, 31 May 2022
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In our Tuesday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
Activists condemn failure to act against Cape Town teacher convicted of sexual assault
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GroundUp reports that Cape Town teacher Ayanda Ntuthu has still not been suspended from the school where he teaches and where he committed sexual assault five-years ago.
Covid-19 broke through despite antibodies in 98% of people, study shows
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BL Premium reports that a new survey of blood donors shows that virtually everyone in SA had antibodies to Covid-19 by the end of the fourth wave in March, but this was not enough to stop another surge in coronavirus cases less than two months later.
High Court rules against SAB, says liquor ban had been necessary during Covid-19 lockdown
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TimesLive reports that the Western Cape High Court has found that the regulations which prohibited the sale, dispensing and distribution of liquor during 2020 had been necessary for assisting and protecting the public and addressing other destructive effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, notably the collapse of the health system.
Saftu congress failed to settle federation’s squabbles, but democracy was the winner
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Terry Bell writes that a destructive political bloodbath was avoided last week at the SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) second elective conference.
Amplats wage deal with unions piles pressure on Sibanye where strike at gold operations remains unresolved
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Business Times writes that the wage deal struck last week by Anglo American Platinum (Amplats) with unions will place the spotlight on peer Sibanye-Stillwater, where a strike at its gold operations shows little sign of being resolved.
Former Transnet CEO Brian Molefe and former CFO Anoj Singh also face arrest
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City Press reports that former Transnet CEO Brian Molefe and former chief financial officer Anoj Singh could be next to find themselves in handcuffs, following the dramatic arrest last week of another former CEO, Siyabonga Gama, alongside other former Transnet top executives.
Something must be done to alleviate rising fuel prices, says Godongwana, with outcome of weekend meeting between Treasury and energy department awaited
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BL Premium reports that the National Treasury and the Department of Mineral Resources & Energy met at the weekend to discuss options regarding fuel prices, which have been hitting highs and threatening to render SA’s fragile economy uncompetitive.
Roundup on Monday, 30 May 2022 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, 27 May 2022.
Report to Saftu congress reveals unions bleeding membership, while marriage with political ideology has lost appeal
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SowetanLive reports that the diagnostic report presented by the SA Federation of Trade Unions’ (Sasftu’s) national executive committee of the organisation’s congress in Boksburg this week painted a bleak picture of how unions appear to be losing grip on labour matters.
With deadline fast approaching, discussions on new social compact ‘intense’
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Fin24 reports that Minister in the Presidency Mondli Gungubele announced on Thursday that discussions between government, business, and labour on a new social compact were “intense” and that there was a desire among the parties to find each other.
Most don’t appreciate what the job as Eskom CEO entails, says André de Ruyter as he hits back at ‘armchair critics’
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TimesLive reports that Eskom CEO André de Ruyter has hit back at “armchair critics” calling for him to resign as load-shedding continues, saying he will only do so if the utility's board asked him to.
Treasury fills two top positions that were vacant for years
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Fin24 reports that Cabinet announced on Thursday that two top positions in the National Treasury, which have been vacant for several years, are to be filled.
Former mineral resources deputy director-general Joel Raphela back in dock on Thursday after being rushed to hospital the day before
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TimesLive reports that former department of mineral resources deputy director-general Joel Raphela, who was on Wednesday rushed from court to hospital for medical attention, has been released on R20,000 bail after a brief appearance in the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Thursday.
Life Healthcare CEO urges government to fix the health-care staff crisis before implementing NHI
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BL Premium reports that Life Healthcare has urged the government to fix SA’s desperate shortage of health-care professionals before it embarks on the sweeping financing reforms proposed in the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, currently before parliament.
SA hurtles towards huge fuel price hike in June, with no reprieve in sight
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BL Premium reports that with a temporary reduction of the general fuel levy set to end, the government says it is giving special attention to the fuel price, which is expected to rise sharply in June.
Morning roundup of labour news on Friday, 27 May 2022
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In our Friday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
VBS bank saga: Corruption-accused former municipal official arrested in hospital bed
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News24 reports that a corruption-accused former municipal employee linked to the VBS Mutual Bank saga was served with a warrant of arrest while lying ill in a hospital bed.
ArcelorMittal strike ends with 6.5% wage increase agreed with Numsa, Solidarity
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Fin24 reports that ArcelorMittal SA (AMSA) has reached a wage agreement with employee unions, bringing to an end two weeks of strike action at its operations.
More than 50 fake positions advertised on social media, warns DPSA
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The Mercury reports that the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) has issued a warning for job-seekers to be careful of a post circulating on social media which claims to come from the department but instead advertises fake positions.
'It is a crisis', says Minister Aaron Motsoaledi as he announces 'complete overhaul' of SA immigration system
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News24 reports that Department of Home Affairs Minister (DHA) Aaron Motsoaledi is determined to proceed with his planned overhaul of the "elephant in the room" that is SA’s immigration system.
‘Think big’ about jobs projects, former Treasury official Andrew Donaldson urges government
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BL Premium reports that a former senior Treasury official has called for the government to be more ambitious about public employment projects, by balancing more spending on social grants with more spending on public employment, particularly for young people.
SARS asks taxpayers to avoid its offices as wage strike gets underway
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Fin24 reports that the SA Revenue Service (SARS) has asked taxpayers not to come into its offices amid a national strike.
Zwelinzima Vavi re-elected as Saftu general secretary at high stakes conference
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Fin24 reports that SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi survived a battle for political survival and was re-elected to the position at the labour federation's second elective conference.
Morning roundup of labour news on Thursday, 26 May 2022
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In our Thursday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
Study finds that working together in an office doesn’t help employees’ sense of connection
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Bloomberg reports that CEOs hellbent on getting workers back in the office after the Covid-19 restrictions claim that being physically together boosts connectivity, but it turns out that’s not the case.
Motsoaledi unveils steps to end long queues at home affairs, including hiring more front-end staff
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BL Premium reports that Department of Home Affairs (DHA) Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has announced a series of measures to deal with long queues at DHA offices, mainly caused by system downtime.
ArcelorMittal refuses to accept memo from striking staff over concerns of violence and intimidation
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The Citizen reports that ArcelorMittal SA (AMSA) has accused the National Union of Metalworkers (Numsa) of failing to address numerous acts of violence and intimidation against its non-striking workers.
Former North West health department head's R30m fraud case postponed due to ill health
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News24 reports that on Monday, the North West High Court postponed the fraud case against the North West Department of Health's former head of department (HOD), Dr Andrew Lekalakala, to 3 October 2022, owing to his ill health.
SARS strike to go ahead on Wednesday after employees reject R500m revised offer
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BL Premium reports that SA Revenue Service (SARS) employees have rejected a last-ditch R500m revised offer tabled by the tax agency in a bid to derail a wage strike starting on Wednesday.