Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin, 20 March 2026
Norman Mampane
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Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin
‘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
20 March 2026
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- COSATU National Gender Elective Conference
- South Africa
- SACP congratulates SAMWU on its successful 13th National Congress
- Deputy President Mashatile to address the 2026 Annual NEDLAC Organised Labour School
- IEC-Run Elections Produce New Leadership as National Dialogue Enters First Phase
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- G20: Trade unions call for defence of democracy, rights and shared prosperity
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
COSATU National Gender Elective Conference
Zanele Sabela, COSATU Spokesperson, 17 March 2026
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is set to convene its 2nd National Gender Elective Conference from 26 to 27 March as part of the organisation’s three-year accountability cycle.
The Gender Office Bearers and Gender Structure will report on the implementation of resolutions and programmes adopted at the Gender Conference in 2022. The Conference takes place at a time of sharpened gender inequalities in the workplace and in society, particularly for women workers, workers with disabilities and LGBTQI+ workers.
The conference will deliberate on the following:
- GBV and sexual harassment, including the implementation of the International Labour Organisation’s Convention 190 and Recommendation 206, which relate to the elimination of violence (including GBV) and harassment in the workplace.
- Care Economy and Care Workers’ Rights
- Gender and climate change: Examining the impact on workers with disabilities.
- Engendering collective bargaining, in particular advancing parental rights and maternity protection.
- Ensuring implementation of COSATU’s gender policies and organisational power.
Alliance partners, ANC Women’s League, SACP and SANCO will deliver messages of support.
The conference will also elect National Gender Office Bearers who will assume responsibility to ensure that the Federation’s work of striving for gender equality is taken forward.
The details of the National Gender Elective Conference are as follows:
•
Date: 26
& 27 March
• Time: 9am
• Venue: Anew Hotel, OR Tambo, 1 Country St, Lakefield, Benoni.
All members of the media are invited to the conference.
RSVP to mam...@cosatu.org.za or non...@cosatu.org.za
Issued by COSATU
Zanele Sabela (COSATU Spokesperson)
Mobile: 079 287 5788 / 077 600 6639
Email: zan...@cosatu.org.za
South Africa #ClassSolidarity
SACP congratulates SAMWU on its successful 13th National Congress
Mbulelo Mandlana, SACP Head of Media, Communications and Information, 20 March 2026
The South African Communist Party (SACP) congratulates the South African Municipal Workers Union (SAMWU), an affiliate of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), for its successful 13th National Congress.
The SACP also congratulates the democratically elected leadership as led by President Nkhetheni Muthavhi, and pledges to continue its support to the leadership and the union as they continue to wage the struggle of municipal workers.
Inspired by the Congress’ theme, “Towards Four Decades and Beyond in Defence of Workers’ Interests”, the members now face the task of advancing the workers’ struggle from strength to strength in the fight for better working and social conditions.
Towards SAMWU’s 40th anniversary and beyond, the Party will continue to play its vanguard role in strengthening the trade union movement in defence of workers’ rights. The SACP pledges to continue contributing towards the galvanisation of the trade union movement’s strength politically, organisationally and ideologically.
ISSUED BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN COMMUNIST PARTY,
FOUNDED IN 1921 AS THE COMMUNIST PARTY OF SOUTH AFRICA.
Media, Communications & Information Department | MCID
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Deputy President Mashatile to address the 2026 Annual NEDLAC Organised Labour School
20 MARCH 2026
Deputy President Shipokosa Paulus Mashatile will on Sunday, 22 March 2026, address the Annual NEDLAC Organised Labour School, taking place at Kievits Kroon Gauteng Wine Estate in Pretoria.
The NEDLAC Organised Labour School is held annually to take stock of the state of the labour market and the challenges facing workers in the country.
This year’s gathering will be held under the theme "Building Trade Union Activism for better wages and better working conditions".
The Annual Labour School brings together delegations from the Federations together with invited guests from the International Labour Organisation and Government Departments.
Members of the media are invited to cover the Deputy President’s address as follows:
Date: Sunday, 22 March 2026
Time : 10:00 (Media to arrive at 9:00)
Venue : Kievits Kroon, Plot 41, Reier Road, Kameeldrift, Pretoria.
Members of the media are requested to RSVP to Ms Linah Ledwaba on 066 240 7635.
Media enquiries: Mr Keith Khoza, Acting Spokesperson to the Deputy President on 066 195 8840.
ISSUED BY THE PRESIDENCY OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA*
PRETORIA
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IEC-Run Elections Produce New Leadership as National Dialogue Enters First Phase
09 MARCH 2026
JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s National Dialogue process has entered its first phase following the successful election of the National Dialogue Steering Committee leadership through a process administered by the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC).
The elections brought forward leaders from across South African society and mark the formal transition from the preparatory phase of the Dialogue to the commencement of the first wave of national engagements.
The newly elected leadership was confirmed during a strategic planning workshop of the Steering Committee held from Friday, 6 March to Sunday, 8 March 2026. The workshop brought together representatives from civil society, labour, business, faith-based organisations and grassroots community structures who have been working to establish the foundations of the Dialogue.
The gathering provided an opportunity to consolidate leadership, clarify governance arrangements and align the key institutions responsible for guiding the national process.
These include the Steering Committee, the Eminent Persons Group (EPG) and the National Dialogue Secretariat, which will collectively support the implementation of the Dialogue Convention.
The leadership of the EPG (Mr Roelf Meyer, Ms Lindiwe Mazibuko, and Mr Siya Xuza) attended the event and provided unwavering message of support and partnership to the members of the Steering Committee and the National Dialogue process.
Speaking following the strategic planning workshop, NEDLAC Executive Director Makhukhu Mampuru said the moment marks an important step in building a credible and inclusive national process.
“The election of the Steering Committee leadership and the consolidation of the governance structures gives the National Dialogue a firm foundation from which to begin the next phase of engagement across the country. The Dialogue must create space for South Africans from all walks of life to participate meaningfully in shaping the country’s future.”
Over the course of the retreat, Steering Committee members reflected on progress made in preparing the Dialogue, assessed the breadth of engagement across sectors and considered the challenges that may shape the process ahead. Participants emphasised the importance of safeguarding the integrity and credibility of the Dialogue while ensuring that it remains inclusive and responsive to the realities facing communities across the country.
The retreat represented the most widely attended gathering in the life of the Steering Committee to date. Leaders from across sectors reaffirmed their commitment to building a process rooted in collaboration, mutual recognition and shared responsibility.
With the leadership now in place, the Steering Committee will in the coming days convene a series of engagements to initiate the first wave of dialogues envisioned in the National Dialogue Convention. These dialogues are expected to create platforms for South Africans across sectors and communities to contribute to discussions aimed at forging a renewed and inclusive social compact.
Management Committee Members
*Co-Chairperson: Mr Romeo Qetsemani
*Co-Chairperson: Ms Tanya Van Meelis
o Secretary: Mr Mabalane Mfundisi
*1st Deputy Secretary: Ms Monica Woodhouse
*2nd Deputy Secretary: Dr Tolika Sibiya
*Resource Mobilisation: Mr Riaan Van Der Bergh
*Spokesperson: Ms Qhamisa Tengile
Chairpersons of Sub Committees
*Content and Social Compact: Mr Looks Matoti
*Fundraising: Mr David Morema
*Monitoring and Evaluation: Dr Valencia Andrews
*Mobilisation: HRH Queen Rebecca Como
*Communications: Ms Mpho Kunene
The Steering Committee will continue engaging stakeholders across the country as the National Dialogue moves into this next phase of national participation.
ENDS
Media Enquiries:
Makhukhu Mampuru-066 250 9384
International-Solidarity
G20: Trade unions call for defence of democracy, rights and shared prosperity
20 March 2026
The Labour 20 (L20) group of unions has warned that the agenda emerging under the United States’ G20 Presidency risks increasing inequalities and undermining democracy and workers’ rights.
“The G20 must stand for a global economy that delivers decent jobs, social justice and shared prosperity. Any attempt to weaken democratic institutions or workers’ protections in favour of billionaires and big corporations will only deepen inequality, instability and undermine democracy.” ITUC General Secretary Luc Triangle
“Right now, working people need their governments to tackle inequality, climate change and technological disruption – not fuel them with deregulation, fossil fuel expansion and unchecked corporate power,” added Veronica Nilsson, TUAC General Secretary.
The L20 launched its 2026 engagement with an online gathering of trade union leaders in early February, and subsequently hosted an event to strengthen efforts to address inequalities, based on the outcomes of the G20 Global Inequality Report.
Under the theme: ‘Reducing inequalities, putting people at the centre of the G20’, it gathered trade unionists, members of the G20 Extraordinary Committee of Independent Experts on Global Inequality, the labour ministers of Brazil and Spain, and the South African G20 Sherpa, as well as the ILO and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs). The participants delivered a strong message on the crucial role of labour in tackling inequalities and the importance of advancing an International Panel on Inequality.
In its statement to G20 governments, the L20 – representing workers across the world’s largest economies – called on leaders to defend democracy, the international rule of law and to promote inclusive growth.
The labour movement cautioned that policies promoted under the US presidency - centred on deregulation, fossil fuel expansion and the interests of big tech corporations - threaten to deepen inequality and weaken democratic institutions.
The L20 emphasised that the G20 must promote:
A democratic, people-centred agenda capable of addressing the major challenges facing working people worldwide.
Rights-based regulation to protect workers, consumers and communities, and to ensure democratic accountability in markets.
A Just Transition to renewable energy that guarantees decent jobs and protects workers’ livelihoods while tackling climate change.
People-centred digitalisation, with strong rules on artificial intelligence and technology to protect jobs, rights, privacy and democracy.
Fair and living wages, strengthened collective bargaining and universal social protection.
Fair taxation, debt relief and stronger multilateral cooperation to reduce inequality and support sustainable development.
Investment in quality public services and education to ensure inclusive growth and prepare societies for the future of work.
The L20 also warned that sidelining engagement groups, including trade unions, and ignoring key issues such as employment, development, health and education weakens the G20’s ability to respond to global challenges.
President of the AFL-CIO Liz Shuler added: “The Trump administration began its second term by dismantling the key agencies that protected workers’ rights around the globe. Now, as the United States hosts the G20, it has taken almost all labor and employment issues off the agenda. But the labor movement will not abandon our obligation to workers. The L20 will carry on this essential work: upholding the commitments G20 governments have made in previous years and building towards a stronger multilateral system that delivers for all working people.”
The G20 Leaders’ Summit is scheduled to take place in Miami on 14–15 December 2026.
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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