Taking COSATU Today Forward, 24 November 2025 #CosatuGolfDay #Cosatu40 #Cosatu40thAnniversary
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #COSATU convenes its ordinary Central Executive Committee this week at Braamfontein #Cosatu40 #VioletSeboniBrigade #Cosatu40thAnniversary #Cosatu scheduled to hold its 40th Anniversary at Dobsonville, Soweto on December 6 #Cosatu@40 #Cosatu40thAnniversary #SACTU70 #ClassStruggle “Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism” #Back2Basics #JoinCOSATUNow #ClassConsciousness |
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
24 November 2025
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
Organize at every workplace and demand respect for labour rights Now!
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- Swinging for Dignity: COSATU and President Ramaphosa Tee Off for a Cause
- Applications for media accreditation to cover COSATU 40th Anniversary rally officially opened
- South Africa
- COSATU welcomes South Africa's successful Presidency of the G20
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- IAM union members ratify new Boeing contract after 15-week strike
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
Swinging for Dignity: COSATU and President Ramaphosa Tee Off for a Cause
Zanele Sabela, COSATU National Spokesperson, 24 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is thrilled to announce its second annual Charity Golf Challenge, an inspiring event where labour, business and government unite on the green for a great cause. Members of the media are warmly invited to attend and cover this unique blend of sport, leadership and social impact.
This flagship initiative is more than a Corporate Social Investment project — it is a powerful demonstration of COSATU’s unwavering commitment to social justice and restoring dignity in communities beyond the workplace.
In a true celebration of Ubuntu, President Cyril Ramaphosa will join COSATU leaders, government departments and business partners on the golf course to help raise funds for its activities, school shoes and sanitary packs for underprivileged learners. Every swing will contribute to changing a child’s school experience and supporting their confidence and wellbeing.
Join us for a remarkable day of purpose-driven play:
COSATU Charity Golf Challenge
- Date: Thursday, 04 December 2025
- Presidential Tee off: 10:40
- Participants Tee off: 11:00 (Shotgun Start)
- Venue: Country Club Johannesburg (CCJ Woodmead)
The challenge will be followed by an elegant Gala Dinner at 18.30, where the day’s achievements will be celebrated and partners honoured.
Members of the media wishing to attend are invited to send their details to non...@cosatu.org.za
Issued by COSATU
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Applications for media accreditation to cover COSATU 40th Anniversary rally officially opened
Zanele Sabela, COSATU National Spokesperson,10 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) invites all members of the media to apply for accreditation to attend and cover the Federation’s historic 40th Anniversary rally. This momentous event is scheduled to take place on 6 December at Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto.
COSATU was launched on 1 December 1985, at the height of the struggle against apartheid. Its formation brought together 33 competing unions and federations that were opposed to apartheid but committed to a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic South Africa.
Alliance partners, local and international guests have been invited to celebrate 40 years of this vibrant movement advancing, defending and protecting the interests and rights of workers and the working class in South Africa and beyond.
Applications for accreditation may be submitted to mam...@cosatu.org.za or non...@cosatu.org.za with the following details:
Name:
Surname:
ID number:
Media House/Address:
Contact number/email:
Alternatively, an application form can be completed via this link:
COSATU 40th Anniversary Media Accreditation Application Form – Fill out form
Issued by COSATU
Zanele Sabela (National Spokesperson)
Mobile: 079 287 5788 / 077 600 6639
Email: zan...@cosatu.org.za
COSATU welcomes South Africa's successful Presidency of the G20
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 23 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes South Africa’s successful Presidency of the G20. The South African government, in particular the Presidency, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation and the African National Congress led government as a collective, did an outstanding job in hosting the first G20 Summit in Africa.
We are heartened by the outpouring of support and camaraderie that South Africa’s Presidency received across the G20, not only amongst the developing nations from Brazil to India, but also the industrialised countries from Canada to China. This has been an affirmation of the importance of multilateralism, meaningful dialogue and political sobriety to resolving the world's often intractable conflicts and challenges.
South Africa’s Presidency has built upon the previous summits hosted in the South, namely Brazil, India and Indonesia, and helped ensure that the developmental needs of Latin America, Africa and Asia were placed firmly on the agenda of the G20. The theme for this year’s Presidency of Solidarity, Inequality and Sustainability speaks to the lived experiences and struggles of billions of workers, the unemployed and marginalised across the world, from workers in the farms of Brazil’s Amazon to the auto plants in Mississippi and coal mines in Mpumalanga.
This year’s Presidency enhanced the progressive precedent set by Brazil of anchoring the G20’s themes, discussions and declaration amongst Labour, Business and Civil Society. This is a bold shift from traditional G20 Summits which were little more than gatherings of politicians with minimal relation to workers, communities or the developing world. This sense of inclusion has helped ensure a meaningful Declaration.
Whilst lauding the extensive and inclusive work done by South Africa’s Presidency, it is critical that these be maintained by future Presidencies, in particular the United States and United Kingdom in 2026 and 2027. The world is experiencing severe crises from high levels of unemployment to entrenched poverty and inequality, and increasingly dangerous degrees of climate change. These are existential matters that humanity can ill afford to ignore.
Equally it is fundamental that all G20 member states honour these important commitments if they want to retain the confidence of the world.
COSATU, workers and society across South Africa and the continent, are particularly proud of how President Cyril Matamela Ramaphosa handled an extraordinarily difficult Presidency that would have tested many a leader.
The President navigated these geo-political challenges with the sensitivities befitting a global statesman. He shrewdly led negotiations as a seasoned leader of mine workers and the trade union movement.
At a time when South Africa and our constitutionally mandated transformation journey have been subjected to all manner of blatant falsehoods and race baiting, President Ramaphosa led with dignity. South Africa, with all of our flaws, pained history and own goals, is a remarkably resilient nation and when tested, will unite and rise to the occasion.
Issued by COSATU
International-Solidarity
IAM union members ratify new Boeing contract after 15-week strike
21 November, 2025
Workers at IAM District 837 in St. Louis, USA, have ratified a new five-year agreement with Boeing, ending a nearly 15-week strike that drew national attention, not only for its duration, but for the unusual bipartisan support it received in one of the more conservative states in the United States.
While the settlement includes wage increases totalling 24 per cent over the life of the contract, reflecting the increasingly competitive labour market for skilled aerospace workers, the significance of this dispute extends far beyond the specific terms. It is part of a broader global trend: as the aerospace sector faces severe labour shortages, rising production pressure and renewed scrutiny over safety and quality, workers across multiple countries are organizing, striking, and winning.
The St. Louis strike follows major aerospace disputes in the United States, Canada, Europe and the UK over the past two years. Across the supply chain, from aircraft assembly to components, engines, defence systems and Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO), companies are struggling to attract and retain skilled labour.
In particular, this deal comes only a year after the major Seattle-area walkout, when 33,000 workers at Boeing’s commercial aviation operations struck in protest of low wage growth and concessions. That strike set a precedent, and the St. Louis contract builds on that momentum.
The shortages that the industry is facing seem to be strengthening workers’ bargaining power worldwide, particularly in high-skill environments where production bottlenecks have immediate consequences for delivery schedules, military contracts and regulatory credibility.
In St. Louis, Boeing threatened to hire permanent replacement workers. But the company was already struggling to recruit and retain skilled labour before the strike, a reality mirrored across the global industry, making the threat ineffective and ultimately reinforcing the union’s leverage.
The strike also stood out politically. Workers received public backing from both Democratic and Republican elected officials, a rare show of cross-party solidarity in the United States, and even more unusual in Missouri, one of the more conservative states in the country.
For the global labour movement, this signals a broader shift: aerospace workers are gaining increasing recognition for the critical role they play in national industrial capacity, economic security and defence supply chains.
A win rooted in unity
IAM District 837 members maintained extraordinary unity over nearly 15 weeks, despite intense pressure. Their determination led to improvements in wage progression, a higher signing bonus than Boeing first proposed and the preservation of a strong retirement plan with a company contribution of up to 8 per cent.
But beyond the numbers, the strike made it clear that when workers stand together, they can significantly influence negotiations, even with some of the world’s largest industrial employers.
Quote from Georg Leutert, IndustriALL Global Union Aerospace Director said:
“The strength shown by IAM District 837 sends a clear message across the global aerospace industry: workers are not only essential, they are powerful. We are seeing the same pattern. As companies struggle to recruit and retain skilled labour, workers are organizing, taking action and winning. This strike demonstrates the power of unity at a moment when the industry is under enormous pressure to deliver safely, on time and with quality. IndustriALL stands in full solidarity with the IAM, and with aerospace workers everywhere who are fighting for decent work, respect, and a fair share of the value they create.”
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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