WORKERS NEWS

EXCO statement

The COSATU EXCO meeting of 22-23 February took the following decisions:

Action against job losses

EXCO assessed the programme of action around job losses to date. COSATU has made significant progress in mobilising members around its demands. It is also meeting with civil society organisations to galvanise their support for the job loss campaign. To date, there has been no meaningful response from either government or business. We hope for appropriate interventions before the regional focus week to avert the action. Broader society supports the campaign, since it does not just affect COSATU members, but all South Africans.

Local government elections

EXCO reaffirmed COSATU's commitment to mobilise workers to vote for a decisive ANC victory in the forthcoming local government elections.

Integration of Cawu into NUM

EXCO was concerned that internal problems have led to the Cawu being unable to properly service its members. There is also evidence of organisational disintegration. EXCO unanimously agreed that it is in the interests of construction workers to join with the NUM as soon as possible. COSATU will assist in convening the relevant Cawu constitutional structures to endorse this decision.

iGoli 2002

There have been many meetings within the Alliance to look at a speedy resolution of the disagreements about the iGoli 2002 programme. COSATU urges the government to commit itself to the National Framework Agreement, and to consult unions on restructuring programmes. We reiterate that service delivery must remain in the hands of elected representatives.

Inflation targeting

EXCO received a report on meetings held in various forums on inflation targeting. This included a meeting held between a government delegation led by President Thabo Mbeki and the COSATU President and General Secretary on the 22 February. COSATU reiterates its concerns about inflation targeting. We are pleased that the Government has categorically stated that it has no intention of using inflation targeting to introduce wage restraint by stealth. We will hold the government to this commitment and will closely monitor and expose any attempt to enforce wage restraint.

We warn employers that COSATU will not co-operate with any attempt to condemn the majority of South African workers to poverty wages. They must address apartheid inequalities and the apartheid wage gap has to be closed. This can only be achieved through systematic wage increase for lower-paid workers. We are disappointed that the government has not announced specific targets on other economic variables such as employment, economic growth, poverty alleviation, rural development and investment. We are concerned that the band announced - between 3% and 6% - may be too low and could threaten future job creation and growth. An excessively conservative target may put pressure on the government and the Reserve Bank to use inappropriate instruments, such as high interest rates or wage restraint. We are happy that the government is not going to turn inflation targeting into a new national ideology. It seems that government intends to subordinate inflation targeting to other economic objectives, particularly employment creation, economic growth, poverty alleviation and other development priorities.

Improvement of Conditions of Service vote

Despite the decentralisation of the vote on Improvements in Conditions of Service, the Government has expressed its commitment to centralised bargaining in the public service. COSATU will monitor future actions to ensure that this commitment is maintained.

Finding a balance

The COSATU General Secretary, Zwelinzima Vavi, recently addressed the COSATU Gauteng REC. This is an edited version of his speech.

Jobs campaign

The Section 77 Notice issued on 31 July last year was meant to protect us from possible victimisation or dismissals during the regional stayaways.

The government, together with business and the Reserve Bank, has tried every trick in the book to ensure that there is no real discussion on the issues that COSATU tabled as demands for the better part of last year.

It is true that the amendment of section 189 of the LRA as well as the Insolvency Act, are subject to the labour law review process. We knew that there was going to be labour law review process and nevertheless submitted our demands as we felt that the two issues (LRA and Insolvency Act) are urgent and require immediate intervention that can not wait for the lengthy process of the labour law review. In fact the government’s intention regarding section 189 of the LRA are not clear. Business wants the opposite of what we want. They want the dismissal of workers to be made easier. The government and business just played hide and seek on the rest of the COSATU demands

We now believe that we have pursued the matter sufficiently at NEDLAC and can ward off any possible challenge, in particular from the side of the employers.

Programme of action

The programme of action has not had a very good showing and yet this matter was decided immediately after the congress. At the congress floor we were militant - calling for decisive action and that a special CEC be convened and concrete dates be set. We came up with a programme and called on affiliates to report to their members on the resolutions of the congress, and to mobilise for January 2000. It appears that very few of our unions bothered to report on the militant statements they made at the Special Congress of COSATU.

I don't know what to do about comrades not finding the balance between what they say and what they do.

Other campaigns

Our campaigns for this year include: Masakhane, the co-ordination of shop steward elections, fighting for public transport, the election of health and safety shop stewards, a campaign against HIV/AIDS, the living wage campaign, job creation, the restructuring of COSATU and the development of a strategy to organise the informal sector.

If we carry out these commitments - as agreed upon - we will have one of the busiest years in the federation. But I think we must be realistic in the light of the very disappointing affiliates' weeks during the jobs campaign. We should adjust our programme in terms of what we think we can do, and what is possible.

I think it has been proven that it is not necessarily the membership that is unwilling to do some things. In most cases it is the leadership that fails to provide leadership or to lead members properly in the right direction. It is the leadership that gets overwhelmed. They don't know which one to touch, and they end up not touching anything.

Key campaigns

These are the issues that I think we must fight for simultaneously:

Public Sector wage dispute

The unresolved public sector wage dispute is going to create a precedent for the private sector. We hope this dispute is going to be resolved as government and unions go for this round of public sector wage talks.

Public sector restructuring

Government is showing an unwillingness to implement agreements reached in 1997/ 98 between itself and public sector unions. It wants to take a short cut, which will result in job losses, particularly in the Eastern Cape and Northern Province.

The National Framework Agreement (NFA)

The NFA lapsed in April last year. Unions feel that this lapse makes no difference as the NFA did not help us stop unilateral restructuring. Management continued to restructure in a manner that continuously put workers' jobs in jeopardy. We need to continue with NFA, but overhaul it so that workers in each sector will have teeth so as to block unilateral restructuring.

We are awaiting the big news with regard to Transnet that could throw several thousands, if not tens of thousands, of workers into the streets.

The National Framework Agreement on local government restructuring

We signed a National Framework with the Department of Provincial and Local governments, and South African Local Governments Association – SALGA. We agreed with government that we needed to avoid the weaknesses of the NFA (on parastatals). As a result of the agreement a Bill to enforce that framework agreement has been drafted and submitted to NEDLAC for negotiations – the Municipal Systems Bill. This Bill has now been sent to Cabinet for discussions, and we have learned that there has been interference. What is likely to come out of it is not even a shadow of what we initially negotiated with government.

I-Goli2002

If we allow iGoli to go through in its current form, then it means we have accepted defeat on the Municipal Systems Bill. We are therefore throwing away the National Framework Agreement signed with government and SALGA.

Job losses

Many economists point to the fact that 20% more jobs will be lost this year. The budget that was announced on 23 February exposed unresolved differences at the level of the alliance on macro-economic questions.

Labour market review

The Minister wants to introduce a new variation model which will allow him to change every right in the BCEA. Currently there are rights that the Minister cannot vary such as maternity, working hours and Sunday work. The new model will destroy these protections.

Fight for what is right

We can't say that things are normal when some people continue to scream for more and more concessions and when workers alone have to pay very painfully for this transformation.

What are the consequences of fighting intensely against iGoli 2002 while hoping at the same time to mobilise workers to vote ANC? How do we deal with this contradiction?

Part of this discussion on the management of these contradictions has to be: what is the greater price to pay between closing your eyes and doing nothing about 365 000 jobs lost between 1996 - 1999 or 500 000 jobs lost since 1994? Doing nothing about it will reduce COSATU to what? Only a trade union movement that has lost its soul, and that does not care any more what happens to its own members will keep mum and do nothing about this carnage. It is crime to ask COSATU not to do any thing in the wake of this massacre. Twenty years down the line, when the next generations of workers calculate the cost of job loss and casualisation – history will judge us harshly.

This issue must be placed within the context of the National Democratic Revolution. Sometimes legitimate goals, can have unintended consequences. The bigger picture can be undermined.

In Germany, in the light of the recent victory of the social democrats, workers are counting the costs of 15-20 years of the conservative leadership of Kohl. Should we not do things differently, so that we don't jump out of the frying pan into the fire? All these things must be weighed up and considered. I would like to hear what comrades are saying about all of these things.

Undermining the ANC in such a manner that it loses the local government elections and we end up with the Democratic Party in power will make us blame ourselves. How do we make sure that we avoid this situation in a manner that does not compromise COSATU on its right to make noises about issues that concern its members and in a manner that does not compromise this revolution? There is a need for this discussion to take place at the Alliance level as well.

This thing called careerism contributes to these problems. Last year, when there were contradictions around the wages of public sector workers, the COSATU president, Willie Madisha, was the victim of this vilifying of individuals. This time it is myself, who is apparently captured by the extreme left that is driving COSATU into the opposite direction from where we know a progressive traditional movement should be going. We have all of us in our lives been accused of this and that. There is no mountain you can climb to and proclaim your innocence.

So, what do you do? You continue to do what you believe is correct, irrespective of what faceless people say. You continue to do that unless they have the guts to engage you and say why they think you are doing things wrong. We must continue to do what the Congress of COSATU has asked us to do. As long as we do that genuinely in a manner that always try to find solutions to the problems at hand, then we are okay.