Taking COSATU Today Forward, 3 March 2026 #IWD2026
Norman Mampane
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Taking COSATU Today Forward
‘Whoever sides with the revolutionary people in deed as well as in word is a revolutionary in the full sense’-Maoo
Our side of the story
3 March 2026
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- COSATU Eastern Cape reflections on SOPA 2026
- COSATU Mpumalanga’s Expectations on the State of the Province Address
- South Africa
- COSATU notes the release for public comments of the draft Labour Relations and Labour Laws Amendment Bills
- COSATU worried by news of arrest of Health Department Director General
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Turning HRDD from compliance into power-HRDD meeting in Paris, February 2026
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
COSATU Eastern Cape reflections on SOPA 2026
Mkhawuleli Maleki, COSATU Provincial Secretary, 23 February 2024
Congress Of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in the Eastern Cape welcomes the State of the Province Address by Premier Lubabalo Oscar Mabuyane on 26 February 2026 and subsequent Post SOPA stakeholders Engagement but believes that there are areas of improvement where much still needs to be done.
The Premier presented the SOPA, giving a detailed account on progress achieved in the period under review. He pointed out the setbacks and challenges encountered during this period as well as identifying what could be done better.
Key points in the address were covered under three broad areas.
- Reducing poverty and tackling high cost of living.
- Driving inclusive growth and Job Creation.
- Building a capable, Ethical and Developmental State.
The Premier’s address highlighted the following, among others.
Recruitment of Early Childhood Development practitioners to accelerate the roll-out of registered ECD programmes. This will enhance the much-needed strong learning foundation.
Completing construction of 25 new schools in the province in 2025. Official opening of the new state of the art Sitoza secondary School in the deep rural areas of Dr A.B. Xuma Municipality.
The Matric Class of 2025 at the school achieved 93.6 % Bachelor Pass rate. Construction of 57 more schools to be completed in 2026. This is welcomed as it will inspire more confidence to learners and teachers alike because the better the tools, the better the job.
Establishment of Renal Dialysis Unit at St Elizabeth Hospital in Ngquza Hill Municipality will benefit patients from the far north-eastern part of the province, as the would no longer travel to Mthatha for that service. Chric Hani and Sarah Baartman Regions are earmarked for the establishment of Renal Dialysis Units in the next financial year.
COSATU welcomes this development and views it as a necessary on in preparations for NHI roll-out.
Few sectors scored pockets of growth. Department of Employment Labour Activation Progamme has benefited thousands of people. The unemployment rate remains stubbornly high, particularly among the young people despite efforts and initiatives to create jobs.
A lasting solution on the job creation front must be found as high level of youth unemployment is a ticking time bomb ready to defuse at any moment.
The annual Investment Conferences are steadily contributing towards job creation. COSATU believes that government must constantly lead efforts of job creation, working with other stakeholders.
COSATU is encouraged by the government’s stance in ensuring that vulnerable groups that include women, youth and military veterans benefit from Local Procurement.
The federation appreciates Provincial Government’s partnership with SANRAL in building roads as part of the infrastructural development in the province. This has contributed to employment creation until the end of the projects, but apart from that, it is changing the face of the provincial roads and improving our road networks.
Consistent with the reputation of being an auto manufacturing province, COSATU is motivated by the partnership between Kia Motors and Ingwe TVET College as it has enhanced access to quality engineering to young people in rural communities. This is part if advancing skills development in preparing young people for jobs in modern economy. Sectoral Education and Training Authorities (SETA’s) are playing a key role in this regard.
On a negative note, crime is on the rise. Our communities are infested with crime. A war against demands a close cooperation among the police, policing forums, members of the community, and other law enforcement agencies.
It is very sad that we still have 427schools with pit toilets in the province. This situation poses health and safety hazards. This is also non-compliance with Occupation al Health and Safety Act. The federation of the workers calls upon the Provincial Government to hasten eradication of pit toilets to avoid incidents of the past to happen into the future.
We look forward to the see how budget would be allocated to support government priorities and address the plight of the working class.
Issued by COSATU Eastern Cape
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COSATU Mpumalanga’s Expectations on the State of the Province Address
Thabo
Mokoena, COSATU Mpumalanga Provincial Secretary, 2 March 2026
The Congress of South Africa Trade Unions in Mpumalanga notes the upcoming State of the Provine (SOPA) to be delivered by the Premier of Mpumalanga. This address comes at a critical time when workers and communities across our provinces are facing deep socio-economic
hardships.
As the voice of workers, COSATU Mpumalanga EXPECTS SOPA to move beyond rhetoric and provide clear, time-bound and implementable interventions to address the many crises confronting our province and the country.
The Unemployment Crisis
Mpumalanga continues to experience extremely high levels of unemployment, particularly among young people and women. Many graduates remain without work, while thousands of workers face retrenchments in key sectors.
We expect SOPA to outline:
- Concrete job creation programmes linked to infrastructure development.
- Clear plans to absorb unemployed youth into the public service, learnerships and artisan development programmes.
- Support for industrialisation and beneficiation to grow sustainable local industries
Government must prioritise decent work and end exploitative labour practices, including labour broking and outsourcing in the public sector.
Collapsing Infrastructure and Service Delivery Communities across Mpumalanga are confronted with:
•
Water shortages and failing sanitation systems.
• Pothole-ridden roads and deteriorating public infrastructure.
• Unreliable electricity supply.
• Poor refuse removal and municipal mismanagement.
SOPA must provide a recovery plan for dysfunctional municipalities, including consequence management for corruption, financial mismanagement and irregular expenditure. Workers and communities cannot continue to suffer due to poor governance.
The Health Crisis
Public healthcare facilities remain under severe strain:
•
Chronic shortages of staff.
• Lack of medication and medical equipment.
• Long queues and deteriorating infrastructure.
COSATU
Mpumalanga expects government to:
• Fill all critical vacancies in hospitals and clinics.
• Improve working conditions for healthcare workers.
• Accelerate preparations for the implementation of the National Health Insurance (NHI).
Healthcare is a constitutional right, not a privilege.
Education Challenges
Many schools in rural and township areas still face:
•
Infrastructure backlogs.
• Scholar transport challenges.
• Overcrowded classrooms.
• Safety concerns.
We expect government to prioritise:
• The eradication of pit toilets.
• Payment of scholar transport service providers.
• Appointment of additional educators and support staff.
• School safety programmes to combat crime and drug abuse.
Crime,
Corruption and Gender-Based Violence
Communities in Mpumalanga are living under constant fear due to:
• High levels of violent crime.
• Gender-based violence and femicide.
• Corruption within state institutions.
SOPA must outline decisive steps to strengthen law enforcement, improve prosecution rates and ensure accountability for corruption. Corruption steals from the poor and undermines service delivery.
Economic Inequality and Cost of Living
Workers are struggling with:
• Rising food prices.
• High transport costs.
• Escalating electricity tariffs.
• Household debt.
Government must expand social protection, support struggling households, and ensure that public funds are directed towards pro-poor programmes rather than wasteful expenditure.
Just Energy Transition
As Mpumalanga remains heavily dependent on coal, government must ensure that the energy transition does not lead to mass job losses. Workers in affected sectors must be retrained, reskilled and absorbed into alternative industries.
A Just Transition must protect workers and communities, not sacrifice them.
Conclusion
COSATU Mpumalanga calls on the provincial government to use SOPA as a turning point. Our people are tired of promises without implementation. We demand measurable targets, transparent reporting and meaningful consultation with labour and communities.
The time for speeches has passed. The time for action is now.
Issued by: COSATU Mpumalanga
South Africa #ClassSolidarity
COSATU notes the release for public comments of the draft Labour Relations and Labour Laws Amendment Bills
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 02 March 2026
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) notes Cabinet’s approval for public comment of the draft Labour Relations and Labour Laws Amendment Bills. These are the product of extensive and often heated negotiations at Nedlac between government, business and labour.
COSATU was deeply angered by the initial proposals tabled at Nedlac by the Department of Employment and Labour in 2022 which would have gutted our progressive labour laws that took COSATU and workers decades of struggles to win. We are pleased that after often very difficult and hard-fought negotiations, COSATU was able to block proposals that would have fundamentally set workers’ rights back. The proposed amendments COSATU secured will strengthen labour rights and further extend protections to millions of vulnerable workers.
Nedlac met for nearly three years where social partners tabled proposed amendments to the Labour Relations, Basic Conditions of Employment and National Minimum Wage Acts. The nation’s most progressive and experienced labour lawyers, including the authors of the Acts, were enlisted to provide technical and drafting expertise. Labour submitted extensive proposals, many of which were agreed to. The Department of Employment and Labour and Business submitted their proposals, many of which were deeply offensive to Labour, and which we managed to subsequently block through intense and robust negotiations.
Whilst COSATU did not achieve all it had sought at Nedlac, we are confident that we have ensured workers’ rights remain secure and won many critical gains advancing workers’ protections.
COSATU successfully defeated proposals to weaken labour rights including proposals to:
- Reduce the National Minimum Wage to R20 an hour.
- Exempt SMMEs from the majority of labour laws.
- Extend the limit on labour broking to 12 months.
- Remove protections from dismissals for persons under 30 years of age.
- Exempt SMMEs from having to pay retrenchment payments if they had not yet operated for 2 years.
COSATU has secured agreement to extend workers’ rights by:
- Increasing severance pay for workers losing their jobs from one to two weeks per year employed.
- Extending protections for the National Minimum Wage including from any deductions.
- Guaranteeing on-call workers a minimum number of shifts to ensure they can earn sufficient income to take care of themselves.
- Requiring labour inspectors to check compliance with pension fund payments by employers.
- UIF assisting workers in the event of an employer defaulting on monies owed to them.
- Recognising the rights of atypical workers, e.g. Uber drivers and performers, to join trade unions and engage in collective bargaining e.g. artists, musicians and actors.
- BCEA provisions compelling employers to pay their employees’ pension contributions will be strengthened including requiring interest to be paid for late payments to the workers’ funds.
Further negotiations will soon conclude on extending the protection of the UIF and Compensation Fund to atypical workers, e.g. actors and musicians.
Some areas of substantial disagreements remain, including exempting start-ups from collective bargaining council agreements. COSATU is continuing to engage with government on these to ensure that the remaining areas of disagreement are resolved in the interests of workers.
Once the Department has considered public comments, they will then be retabled at Nedlac for final consideration on any further needed amendments. They will then be submitted to Cabinet and Parliament, which will hold further public consultations.
COSATU remains confident that the final legislation will continue to protect workers’ rights and that such protections will be further extended.
Issued by COSATU
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COSATU worried by news of arrest of Health Department Director General
Zanele Sabela, COSATU Spokesperson, 2 March 2026
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is deeply concerned by news that the Director General of the Department of Health, Dr Sandile Buthelezi, was arrested for serious allegations of theft from the Global Fund meant for the fight against HIV/Aids, TB, and Malaria.
Dr Buthelezi was arrested along with the CFO, Phineas Mamogale, and Acting Deputy Director General of Corporate Services, Malixole Mahlathi, on Monday. The trio appeared before the Pretoria Commercial Crimes Court on charges of theft and fraud for stealing more than R1 million from the fund.
The three allegedly used the Global Fund money to irregularly appoint service providers to investigate and chair a disciplinary hearing against the lead implementor of the fund, Maile Ngake.
COSATU welcomes the arrests of these senior Department of Health officials and commends the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) on the investigation that led to the arrests. However, instead of the arrests bringing us relief, COSATU is now worried given the department has reportedly received more than R2 billion from the Global Fund to implement HIV/Aids and TB programmes. Over and above this substantial allocation, the Department has also received almost half a billion Rand for the rollout of the much-lauded, Lenacapavir (LEN).
LEN prevents new HIV infections; but unlike other pre-exposure prophylaxis, it is injectable and administered twice a year – only. Meaning an individual who receives a jab in January will receive the next jab six months later but will be protected throughout. It is for this reason that LEN is perceived of as a gamechanger in the fight against HIV and AIDS because it will drastically reduce HIV incidents and infection rates and if successfully rolled out, bring us closer to ending HIV as a public health threat by 2030.
South Africa has the largest number of people living with HIV and is set to be among the first African countries to receive LEN. The procurement of LEN into South Africa is made possible through funding from the Global Fund. Rollout is planned for mid-2026.
It is for this reason that COSATU is pained to hear that the most senior health official is embroiled in the theft of funds from the Global Fund. Even more concerning, this is not the first scandal to come out of the country involving funds from this donor organisation.
The Independent Development Trust (IDT)’s R836 million oxygen plant installation project, also involved Global Fund monies.
COSATU calls on the Hawks to extend their probe to ensure none of the newly received funding has been interfered with. The Federation also calls on the National Prosecuting Authority to leave no stone unturned to guarantee those guilty of siphoning off funds meant for HIV/Aids, TB and Malaria patients are prosecuted, their assets attached and made to serve their time in prison.
Issued by COSATU
International-Solidarity
Turning HRDD from compliance into power
HRDD meeting in Paris, February 2026
24 February, 2026
More than 100 trade unionists from across the world met in Paris on 19–20 February for the final conference of the first joint industriAll Europe and IndustriALL globgal union project: ABC of RBC (Responsible Business Conduct). The conference delivered a clear message: human rights due diligence (HRDD) along global supply chains must deliver real change for workers.
Opening the meeting, IndustriALL Global Union general secretary Atle Høie warned that while global framework agreements have pushed the agenda forward, not being legally binding they still lack the reach needed to fully protect workers. Recent laws in for example France, Germany, Norway and at EU level mark major progress compared with five years ago, he said, but implementation is now the decisive battleground.
Judith Kirton-Darling, general secretary of industriAll Europe warned, in her opening remarks that legal frameworks mean little unless unions act together to put union power at the centre and turn HRDD into a living tool. She stressed that as business models change, we must change too, ensuring that we are constantly representing workers rights and trade union freedom in this rapidly changing economy.
The task for unions is to build real momentum around HRDD by connecting organizing efforts across the Global North and South and making due diligence work across entire supply chains. Strong unions and sustainable structures are essential, Høie stressed, because without trade unions there is no real democracy.
Unions must drive the change
Across the two days, speakers highlighted both opportunity and risk. Veronica Nilsson of TUAC pointed to the continued importance of OECD national contact points, while IndustriALL assistant general secretary Kan Matsuzaki stressed the need to build union density and support workers directly on the ground.
Participants voiced strong concern about companies whitewashing their records through weak industry initiatives and voluntary audits. The priority, many said, is changing the reality in workplaces through stronger monitoring, communication and cross-border union networks.
Sector discussions underscored the urgency. Justice Chinhema of ZDAMWU in Zimbabwe reported daily violations of fundamental trade union rights in mining and questioned how HRDD frameworks apply when investors in Sub-Saharan Africa come from outside Europe. Claudia Rahman of IG Metall stressed that effective HRDD depends on robust structures and honest reporting of risks, including retaliation against workers. Headquarters unions have important leverage, she noted, but cannot succeed without far closer cooperation with unions in production countries. Ildikó Krén of industriAll Europe highlighted the need to train workers and develop concrete organising strategies that translate HRDD from an abstract system into real improvements in working conditions.
Day two focused on coordination along global value chains. Karin Ström of Unionen presented a transparency analysis tool for mapping supply chains, while Nazma Akter of Bangladeshi union SGSF pointed to the International Accord as proof that legally binding, worker-driven mechanisms can deliver when backed by unity.
The message from Paris was clear: unions are match ready with tools in hand. The challenge now is to use them strategically, so HRDD becomes not just compliance, but leverage.
From compliance to real leverage
Building on the discussions held in Paris, industriAll Europe and IndustriALL Global Union will continue advancing the dialogue on how to translate these insights into a more structured and coordinated approach. Potential next steps include further mapping of regulatory and leverage tools, strengthening global union networks, exploring ways to better integrate HRDD into Global Framework Agreements, and enhancing affiliate capacity at all levels.
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Norman Mampane (Shopsteward Editor)
Congress of South African Trade Unions
110 Jorissen Cnr Simmonds Street, Braamfontein, 2017
P.O.Box 1019, Johannesburg, 2000, South Africa
Tel: +27 11 339-4911 Direct line: 010 219-1348