| INSIDE LABOUR |
Cosatu in bruising pursuit of ANC's soul  2010-09-03 04:00:01 Whatever the outcome of the current public sector dispute, it is perfectly clear that the overwhelming majority of public sector workers are bitter about the government; about the arrogance and incompetence displayed in the negotiations this year. But many are feeling the pinch after being on strike for more than two weeks and may - very reluctantly - feel they have to accept this latest offer. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Failure to learn from past the main culprit 2010-08-27 04:00:01 If the public sector strike is not settled by today then, by this time next week, the country could be on the brink of an even greater shutdown. Cosatu unions have already promised solidarity action and National Council of Trade Unions general secretary Manene Samela yesterday pledged full support from his trade union federation. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Miners take the fall as AEE turns to BEE 2010-08-20 04:00:01 In the stygian depths of South Africa's mines, 556 mainly young men died between 2007 and 2009. It is a shocking statistic, nearly four times the international benchmark for mine deaths per hour worked. But this is just the tip of a huge, largely ignored, mass of horrendous suffering and exploitation that has blighted this country for more than a century. [Full Story...] 2 Comments Unions oppose state on essential services rule, information bill 2010-08-13 04:00:01 Status does not put bread on the table or pay the bills. That is one of several labour movement lessons underlined by the current dispute that has seen nurses, junior doctors and teachers supporting industrial action by the wider public sector. [Full Story...] 0 Comments The only real leverage remains to strike 2010-08-06 04:00:01 The focus of the media and public is again this week on the public sector strike. Yet there are other strikes and threats of industrial action under way at the same time. And not only here, but even in countries such as China. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Offer may halt strike, but anger grows 2010-07-30 06:00:00 A great deal of murk and misinformation needs to be got out of the way for a reasonable and honest assessment of the public sector dispute. In the first place – and despite numerous and often contradictory reports – it will be obvious by today that the country’s 380 000 teachers did not join the partial, two-day public sector strike that began yesterday. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Unions still hope for civil service pay deal 2010-07-23 04:00:01 The cabinet lekgotla held earlier this week may have come up with a pay and conditions solution that could avert a major public sector strike. Fresh from the lekgotla, Public Services Minister Richard Baloyi called a meeting yesterday with representatives of the two groups of unions now in dispute with the government. [Full Story...] 0 Comments We spent this year's grocery cash on one big jol 2010-07-16 04:00:01 The World Cup party is over, although a warm, post-party glow still persists in many quarters. Understandably, since there was something of a fairy tale quality to the whole exercise, especially considering the preponderance of doom and gloom that surrounded the build-up to the event against its eventual success. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Labour time bomb has stopped ticking 2010-07-09 04:00:01 AS THE World Cup builds up to its finale this weekend, so too do the tensions between the government and workers in the public sector. And while the World Cup trophy will be won and lost on Sunday, the battle between the state and those who labour in its service, will only be getting seriously under way, with threats of strike action. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Workers of the world unite once more 2010-07-02 04:00:01 The tumult surrounding last week's Group of 20 (G20) meeting in Toronto may be a sign of things to come. This was the stark warning issued by the International Trade Union Confederation (Ituc) in the wake of the meeting. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Loss of jobs while profits rise shows crisis 2010-06-25 04:00:01 The economy is improving. Pity about the jobs. That, in essence, seems to be the view of most mainstream economists - a view that has hackles rising throughout the trade union movement. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Workers 'still in shacks' after World Cup 2010-06-11 04:00:01 The World Cup has done no favours for the labour movement or for South African workers. While euphoria exists about about the opening game this afternoon and support for Bafana Bafana seems almost universal, the excitement is tinged with cynicism and anger. [Full Story...] 1 Comment Vavi intrigue shows ANC centre slipping 2010-06-04 04:00:01 The row over the call from within the ANC to discipline Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi has little to do with trade unions and trade unionism and more to do with the scheduled ANC conference in 2012 - against the background of an 80-year-old battle that has simmered and sometimes flared within the governing alliance. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Inside Labour: Unions warn of drift to authoritarianism 2010-05-28 04:00:01 A growing section of the labour movement is expressing concern about a drift towards authoritarianism. They maintain that the rule of law is being eroded while politically well-connected and money-grubbing individuals - some within the union movement - continue to profit. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Snoozing SA to lose out on Cup benefits 2010-05-21 04:00:01 Most trade unionists, including those currently on strike or those - in Eskom and the public service - who are considering strike action, are probably looking forward to the spectacle of the World Cup. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Compensation fund in state of disarray 2010-05-14 04:00:01 In the midst of the relative turmoil resulting from the coincidence of the World Cup and the annual wage bargaining season, I have to register a mea culpa - a confession of guilt: I have not kept an eye on the source of one of the greatest official travesties visited for years on injured workers or the families of those who died pursuing their paid occupations. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Negotiation season: who is blackmailing whom? 2010-05-07 04:00:01 As the strike against Transnet looms, accusations of blackmail have unsurprisingly been bandied about by the business sector and its praise singers and apologists. How, they ask, is it possible for workers in so vital a sector to go on strike with the World Cup only weeks away? [Full Story...] 0 Comments Inside Labour: Military unions claim they are victimised 2010-04-30 04:00:01 As chilly economic winds continue to blow, fanning flames of civil disobedience and discontent around the country, the government faces rebellious rumblings within its uniformed services. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Inside Labour: Unions see Sexwale's R1bn fund as a sop 2010-04-23 04:00:01 Human Settlements Minister Tokyo Sexwale is providing a new boost to flagging bank profits by promising a R1 billion fund to guarantee against defaults by low-wage earners. This is the view of growing numbers of trade unionists following the announcement of this latest flagship scheme by the government. [Full Story...] 0 Comments Inside Labour: Malema twists the history of Zimbabwe 2010-04-16 04:00:01 The late, great American author James Baldwin once wrote: "Ignorance allied with power is the most ferocious enemy justice can have." Based on their experience, this is a sentiment with which many trade unionists in Zimbabwe heartily concur. [Full Story...] 1 Comment |
