Taking COSATU Today Forward, 26 January 2026 2#Back2SchoolCampaign #Right2LearnCampaign
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #Back2SchoolCampaign #Right2LearnCampaign #Cosatu40 #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
26 January 2026
“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!
- COSATU welcomes the payment of salaries to Denel workers
- South Africa
- Denial of Entry to Education International Delegation Will Only Strengthen Our Resolve
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Unions from Adidas supplier countries meet amid growing concerns over collective bargaining
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
COSATU welcomes the payment of salaries to Denel workers
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 25 January 2026
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) welcomes the payment of salaries due to Denel workers at two of its divisions, Denel Dynamics and Denel PMP (Pretoria Metal Pressings). This provides welcome relief to these hard-working employees and their families.
We remain concerned about the state of these divisions and the broader Denel group. Workers at these two divisions were informed earlier in the week that they may not be paid. Management needs to take workers into their confidence about the implementation of Denel’s turnaround plan, how the substantial financial support from government has been utilised, and what is being done to fulfill its backlog of orders to clients.
Workers need assurance that this will not happen again next month and that management will ensure that Denel is truly on the path to recovery from the dark chapter of state capture and will return to its rightful place as the leading defence industry company in the continent and a global leader.
It is critical that the Ministry and Department of Defence actively fulfill their oversight role for Denel and not simply rely upon good wishes and glossy presentations from management. This needs to include a close partnership with Armscor and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, as well as major domestic customers such as the South African National Defence Force, Police Service, Correctional Services and other law enforcement arms of the state and the private security and arms industry. This partnership is critical to reviving the defence and aviation masterplan.
COSATU will continue to offer its support to workers at Denel and the unions organising there. Denel can and must be turned around as the state capture chapter is dismantled by the African National Congress led government.
Its turnaround will be an important catalyst to the revival of South Africa’s lucrative defence industry and the sustaining and creation of thousands of badly needed jobs.
Issued by COSATU
Denial of Entry to Education International Delegation Will Only Strengthen Our Resolve
Dr Mugwena Maluleke, SADTU General Secretary, 24 January 2026
The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) condemns, in the strongest possible terms, the actions of the Israeli occupation authorities in preventing a high-level Education International (EI) delegation from entering Palestine on the International Day of Education.
The EI delegation, comprising the EI General Secretary, Dr David Edwards; the SADTU President, Magope Maphila; EI Executive Board members; and leaders of education unions from across the world, was travelling at the invitation of the General Union of Palestinian Teachers (GUPT) to stand in solidarity with Palestinian educators and to participate in activities marking the International Day of Education. The programme included celebrating teachers graduating from a professional development initiative supported by EI and its member organisations.
According to Education International, members of the delegation were detained for hours, subjected to interrogation, had their passports confiscated, and were forcibly returned to Jordan. This constitutes a blatant affront to freedom of movement, academic freedom, and trade union rights.
“Intimidation will not silence educators; it will only strengthen our resolve. This delegation was armed with nothing but a message of solidarity, hope, and humanity. To detain and expel education leaders who came to honour teachers is not a show of strength; it is an admission of fear of the moral force of education. Every barrier you erect steels our determination to organise, to teach, and to defend the right to education in Palestine and everywhere,” said Dr Mugwena Maluleke, General Secretary of the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU).
“We invited our colleagues to share the joy and achievement of Palestinian teachers graduating to serve their learners and communities. They carried only solidarity, hope, and humanity, and no checkpoint can stop that. Denying them entry cannot deny our right to learn, to teach, and to be heard. With SADTU, Education International, and unions worldwide, we will continue to defend every student’s right to education and every teacher’s right to dignity, movement, and professional growth. Attempts to isolate us only
deepen our courage and strengthen our community,” said the General Union of Palestinian Teachers (GUPT).
Let it be clearly understood that attempts at intimidation will not silence us; they will only strengthen our resolve. Preventing international educators from standing alongside Palestinian colleagues at this critical moment is not only punitive but also a deliberate effort to isolate Palestinian education from its global community and suppress international solidarity. We refuse to be intimidated. Our commitment to the rights of teachers and learners everywhere will deepen, not diminish.
Palestinian educators continue to defend the fundamental right to education under extreme conditions. The graduating teachers represent the future of Palestinian education—its resilience, commitment, and hope. No wall, checkpoint, or administrative barrier can halt the moral force of that message or sever the bonds between educators across borders.
SADTU stands in unwavering solidarity with the people of Palestine and with our sister union, GUPT. We call for full respect for international law, including the right to education and the freedoms of association, expression, and movement for educators and their unions. We further call on the global education community, democratic institutions, and civil society to condemn actions that undermine educational rights and to intensify support for Palestinian teachers, learners, and schools.
About SADTU:
The South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) is the largest teachers’ union in South Africa, committed to quality public education for all and to the defence of workers’ rights, academic freedom, and human dignity.
–Ends–
ISSUED BY: SADTU Secretariat
International-Solidarity
Unions from Adidas supplier countries meet amid growing concerns over collective bargaining
22 January, 2026
Trade union representatives from key Adidas supplier countries met in Indonesia on 14–15 January for talks focused on labour standards, collective bargaining and conditions along the company’s global supply chain.
Around 30 union representatives from Cambodia, Indonesia, Pakistan, India and Myanmar, alongside a delegation from German union IGBCE, gathered in Tangerang, Indonesia, to strengthen coordination between unions in Adidas production countries and gain clearer insight into how labour standards are applied across the supply chain.
The meeting took place against growing concern over Adidas’ approach to collective bargaining. In Germany, the company withdrew from sectoral collective bargaining on 1 September 2025, a move unions describe as unexpected and damaging to long-standing social partnership arrangements.
Addressing the meeting, IGBCE executive board member Alexander Bercht said Adidas had previously been covered by collective agreements for the shoe and sporting goods industry. He told delegates that repeated efforts to persuade the company to return to collective bargaining had failed and that management had not responded to demands to begin negotiations on a domestic agreement.
The decision in Germany has been closely watched by union representatives in Asia. Delegates raised concerns about working conditions in their home countries, citing limited worker protections, pressure on supplier companies and obstacles to raising complaints. Several warned that developments in Germany risk sending a negative signal throughout the supply chain.
“The issue of collective bargaining at Adidas plays a huge role around the world,”
Bercht said, noting that decisions taken at headquarters often shape labour relations far beyond Europe.
Ahead of the meeting, IndustriALL Global Union raised its concerns directly with Adidas management. In a letter to chief executive Bjørn Gulden, IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie called on the company to restore its collective bargaining commitments in Germany and uphold international labour standards across its operations. IndustriALL has also urged Adidas to join the ACT initiative, which promotes living wages and collective bargaining in the garment and footwear industry. While brands including C&A, H&M, Inditex and Zalando are signatories, Adidas has so far declined to participate.
Delegates also raised concerns about Adidas’ continued sourcing from Myanmar, where a military junta seized power in 2021. Union representatives cited the case of supplier Pou Chen and warned that freedom of association is not possible under current conditions, increasing risks for workers.
To strengthen long-term oversight of labour rights, wages and environmental standards, unions agreed to establish an international Adidas network under the umbrella of IndustriALL. The network aims to improve information sharing, strengthen organizing across borders and increase pressure on the company to engage in meaningful social dialogue.
“This meeting and the establishment of a global union network mark an important step in linking disputes over collective bargaining in Germany with the realities faced by workers throughout Adidas’ global supply chain,”
said Christina Hajagos-Clausen, IndustriALL textile and garment director.
“Bringing workers together across borders shows the strength of union solidarity.”
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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