Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin, 17 February 2025 #NoToAusterityMeasures #L20
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #Cosatu scheduled to participate in the #NoToBudgetCuts protest march in Cape Town on Wednesday! #ClassStruggle “Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism” #Back2Basics #JoinCOSATUNow #ClassConsciousness |
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
17 February 2025
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- POPCRU Demands Treasury Reimburse DCS for Outstanding Funds
- South Africa
- “SACP rejects a VAT increase, stands opposed to the neo-liberal agenda of austerity” – Party statement on the forthcoming budget
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- POPCRU strengthens bilateral ties with global police unions from Sweden and Norway
- Campaigning Yazaki workers reach favourable agreement after company closes plants in Uruguay
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
POPCRU Demands Treasury Reimburse DCS for Outstanding Funds
Richard Mamabolo, POPCRU National Spokesperson, 14 February 2025
The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) expresses deep concern over the failure of National Treasury to reimburse the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) for the Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) for financial year 2024/2025, which led to the deficit for the DCS.
While we have successfully advocated for the implementation of grade and pay progressions within the department, Treasury’s decision to withhold reimbursement has plunged DCS into financial distress.
Initially, National Treasury assured DCS that it would provide reimbursement for the COLA expenditure. However, it has since reneged on this commitment, leaving the department struggling to meet its operational and financial obligations. As a direct result, DCS is unable to cover essential expenses, including overtime and night visit payments. Moreover, certain crucial resources have been withdrawn from Management Areas and centralised, further complicating the department’s ability to function effectively.
Budget cuts imposed by National Treasury have critically weakened DCS, limiting its capacity to fulfil its mandate of rehabilitation and social reintegration. Over the past five years, the department has suffered a cumulative budget reduction exceeding R12 billion. The adverse effects of these cuts are evident in downsizing or discontinuation of some of the rehabilitation initiatives. The ripple effect is that other programmes such as skills development, formal education programmes, psychological counselling, etc also suffer and sadly deprive inmates of opportunities for rehabilitation. Furthermore, this contributes to higher recidivism rates, as released offenders struggle to reintegrate into society.
Lack of funding has also hindered the maintenance and building of correctional facilities, leading to severe overcrowding. The current ratio of correctional officials to inmates stands at an alarming 1:20, exposing inmates to increased violence, gang activity, and other dangers. Correctional officers, in turn, face heightened risks of attacks and are increasingly overwhelmed by unsafe working conditions.
The planned recruitment of 3,000 learner correctional officers is yet to be realised due to financial constraints. Additionally, the shift pattern restructuring and the promotion policy remain unimplemented, exacerbating staff shortages and workplace inefficiencies.
POPCRU calls upon National Treasury to urgently review its funding model and reinstate adequate financial support to the DCS. We urge the Minister of Correctional Services, the National Commissioner, and the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services to strongly oppose these detrimental budgetary constraints.
The continued financial instability of DCS threatens the safety of both correctional officials and inmates, while undermining efforts to rehabilitate offenders and reduce crime. Treasury’s role should be to strengthen, not weaken, the nation’s correctional system.
We stand firm in our demand for Treasury to honour its commitment and reimburse the DCS without further delay.
Issued by POPCRU
“SACP rejects a VAT increase, stands opposed to the neo-liberal agenda of austerity” – Party statement on the forthcoming budget
Dr Alex Mohubetswane Mashilo, SACP Central Committee Member
National Spokesperson & Political Bureau Secretary for Policy and Research, 17 February 2025
The South African Communist Party (SACP) denounces and rejects, in advance, the budget to be tabled on Wednesday, 19 February 2025, by the Minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, if it entails an increase in Value-Added Tax (VAT). Several domestic and foreign-controlled media reports, such as Bloomberg’s “South Africa May Need to Hike Value-Added Tax in Next Budget”, appear to form part of a wider propaganda campaign driven by a certain circle within the National Treasury. This circle is pushing to increase VAT further after it was hiked from 14 per cent to 15 per cent in April 2018 against the explicit wishes of the working class. The May 2024 election manifesto that we, as Alliance partners, endorsed commits the government to tackling the cost-of-living crisis by prioritising “food security, including through VAT exemption on essential items” – not increasing VAT.
What the National Treasury must do is to introduce a wealth tax and a more progressive tax approach, focusing on generating revenue from the rich and wealthy to fund development and key priorities amid the high rates of inequality that characterise South Africa. This measure is essential for redistributing resources and addressing the deeply entrenched disparities in income and opportunity. It will also ensure that the burden of funding public services is more equitably shared, promoting social cohesion and shared economic growth in line with the Freedom Charter’s clarion call, “The people shall share in the country’s wealth”.
The SACP will not stop at merely rejecting such a budget. We will embark on a deep-going process of mass mobilisation of the working class against it until victory is achieved and secured. This has far-reaching political implications. The attempt to justify a VAT increase under the guise of the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) Grant, whose unemployed beneficiaries have been significantly reduced through austerity-driven red tape, is unfathomable. The unemployed – both those actively seeking work and those discouraged after years of looking for work without success under 28 years of neo-liberal policy failure – must not be used as “VAT-increase footballs”.
Instead of increasing VAT and entrenching austerity measures – marked by budget cuts and negative average medium-term expenditure growth affecting critical developmental priorities – the SACP calls for a budget that facilitates large-scale employment creation through broad-based industrialisation, towards the Freedom Charter’s right of all to work. To achieve this, the government must lead by example by investing directly in the economy, rather than relegating key leaders to uncritical marketing agents for private capital.
From a scientific perspective, increasing VAT disproportionately hurts the working class and poor. VAT is a regressive tax that falls hardest on those who already endure economic deprivation. For households living on the pittance afforded by low wages or social grants, every VAT increase strips away what little purchasing power they possess. Essential goods – such as food, electricity and transport – already make up the bulk of expenses for the poor. Further raising VAT would compound the high cost of living, forcing more families into deeper poverty. Meanwhile, the rich – whose corporate income tax has been repeatedly slashed – will continue smiling all the way to the bank, untouched by the economic violence inflicted on workers and poor.
The SACP reiterates its long-established position on austerity. In July 2022, the SACP stated:
“Austerity should not be confused with trimming perks for senior officials or ensuring greater value for money by cutting rent-seeking or tackling corruption. Such measures should all be part of normal, prudent management of public funds, which we would support. Neo-liberal austerity involves as its defining characteristics: (1) the prioritisation over all else of the achievement of predefined macro-economic balances and ratios deemed by the neo-liberal playbook to be universally applicable everywhere and under all circumstances; and (2) the achievement of these ratios by cutting government expenditure, even to the extent of cutting redistributive programmes and withdrawing from any real stimulus.”
Further, the SACP warned:
“Experience in many jurisdictions has shown that austerity often unleashes a vicious cycle. Cuts made to restore fiscal numbers promote stagnation. Stagnation reduces revenue collection, which leads in turn to more cuts.”
Under an alternative, as the SACP suggested:
“An effective recovery programme – particularly one targeting greater inclusivity and cutting unemployment and poverty – would generate more resources for the fiscus. This, rather than austerity, should be the preferred route to fiscal sustainability.”
The SACP stands ready to take militant action alongside all progressive forces to roll back any regressive measures imposed on the working class, and we call on all workers and poor communities to unite in the fight for economic justice.
The SACP further expects a budget that will advance the implementation of the National Health Insurance as a critical step towards ensuring access to quality healthcare for all. The budget must also take meaningful strides towards a comprehensive social security system by making tangible progress to advance the introduction of a universal basic income grant. Such measures are essential to providing economic relief and dignity to millions of impoverished households, addressing poverty and inequality head-on, and strengthening the social safety net.
Finally, a government that defers its solutions to unelected private capital betrays the very people it is meant to serve. For almost every problem – whether in electricity, rail, ports, water, or elsewhere – “the private sector is the solution” is uncritically claimed. Although it does deal much with policy capture, critically, the Report of the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture highlights the significant role played by the private sector, including Global North-controlled multinational auditing and consultancy firms, in crippling major public entities such as Eskom and Transnet, and in driving the state capture agenda at key public institutions such as the South African Revenue Services.
A critical analysis of the commission’s findings reveals how unscrupulous private capital interests, through collusion with corrupt and capturable elements in the state, have actively contributed to the deterioration of public services and the erosion of state capacity in pursuit of profits. To this end, dominant sections of the private sector have promoted privatisation and micro-economic liberalisation as policy instruments to capture state assets or functions. The uncritical narrative that the private sector is the solution conveniently ignores this track record of plunder and destabilisation. Instead of this agenda, greater focus must be on rebuilding state-owned entities through recapitalisation, democratic control and accountability to the people.
Issued by the South African Communist Party,
Founded in 1921 as the Communist Party of South Africa.
Media, Communications & Information Department | MCID
International-Solidarity
POPCRU strengthens bilateral ties with global police unions from Sweden and Norway
Richard Mamabolo, POPCRU National Spokesperson, 13 February 2025
Today, our Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) leadership significantly hosted international guests from Norway and Sweden. The visit of our comrades from Norway and Sweden was not just a diplomatic engagement—it was a strategic initiative aimed at enhancing labour relations, improving working conditions, and advocating for ethical and community-centred policing models. This engagement reinforced the strong ties between POPCRU and its international allies while positioning South Africa as a key player in global labour movements.
In an era where policing faces increasing global challenges—ranging from transnational crime to human rights concerns—it is essential for police unions to collaborate and share best practices. POPCRU has for long recognized the significance of strengthening bilateral relations with other police unions worldwide to enhance collective bargaining power, professional development, and advocacy for progressive policing models.
Policing unions from both these countries visited our POPCRU Headquarters with the sole aim of strengthening international relations to allow both parties to exchange best practices in labour rights and policing standards, develop strategies to improve working conditions and collective bargaining efforts, create a unified stance on human rights, police accountability, and justice system reforms and advocate for the demilitarization of police and community-centred policing models.
Also present was the Safer South Africa Foundation (SAAF), which gave a distinct account of its initiatives in crime-prevention activities.
Given the common struggles faced by police officers globally, including job insecurity, political interference, and operational challenges, fostering bilateral relations enhances the ability of unions to push for fair policies at both national and international levels.
POPCRU shares a long-standing and strategic partnership with Norwegian and Swedish police unions, which has been instrumental in advancing its vision for a progressive and professional policing system in South Africa.
The Norwegian Police Union has been a strong ally in knowledge-sharing, training, and policy development. Some key areas of cooperation include capacity building and training as they have provided technical assistance and training programs to enhance skills within the South African policing sector.
This partnership has emphasized human rights-based approaches to policing, advocating for policies that prioritize community engagement and conflict resolution in line with the goals set out by our SSAF as led by Mme Riah Phiyega as the CEO and Executive Director, and our former President Dr Cebekhulu as the Chairperson of the Board.
On the other hand, Sweden is renowned for its progressive policing model, emphasizing trust, accountability, and social justice. POPCRU’s relationship with Swedish police unions has been particularly beneficial in promoting community-oriented policing, and learning from Sweden’s model of proactive, service-driven policing rather than reactive enforcement, we are sure to advance our practices in this very vital field.
The Swedish police union has supported POPCRU’s efforts to advocate for greater gender representation and protection against gender-based violence (GBV) in the police force as well, something we have been excelling on campaigning for in the midst of the many bridges we still face.
Overall, by reinforcing our ties with international police unions, POPCRU achieves several critical goals which include access to global labour strategies that help secure better wages, benefits, and working conditions for officers, modernising South African policing, promoting a stronger international network that enables POPCRU to participate in global forums, influencing policies that impact policing and labour rights and the exposure to global best practices strengthens POPCRU’s internal structures, making it more effective in mobilizing members and negotiating policies.
While the relationship with Norwegian and Swedish police unions is invaluable, POPCRU will continue to expand its international footprint by engaging with unions in Africa, Latin America, and Asia to address common challenges in policing and security sector reforms, advocating for international labour standards that protect police officers’ rights across different jurisdictions and participating in global policing conferences to influence policies on fair labour practices, police accountability, and community policing.
POPCRU’s efforts to strengthen bilateral relations with international police unions, particularly those in Norway and Sweden, are vital for the future of policing in South Africa. These partnerships not only help improve labour conditions but also support the transformation of policing into a more professional, ethical, and community-oriented service. Moving forward, continued global collaboration will empower POPCRU to drive progressive change, enhance police officers’ rights, and ensure a fair and just policing system for all.
Solidariteit!
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Campaigning Yazaki workers reach favourable agreement after company closes plants in Uruguay
17 February, 2025
Former employees at Yazaki Uruguay have reached a favourable agreement with the Japanese firm after it announced that it was closing its plants in the country. Following a long campaign, Yazaki has agreed to an additional payout for workers.
Tripartite negotiations were held between Yazaki, the labour ministry and representatives from the National Union of Metal and Allied Workers (UNTMRA, IndustriALL affiliate in Uruguay), the union federation PIT-CNT and IndustriALL with the aim of reaching an agreement for 1,200 workers who lost their jobs with the sudden closure of the company's two plants in the country.
After intense talks an agreement was reached and then approved by the workers’ assembly. Yazaki agreed to respect its former employees’ right to a final settlement and to grant a once-off severance payment and special unemployment insurance for one year, representing an additional payout of US$3.5 million for workers.
The president of the PIT-CNT, Marcelo Abdala, explained at a press conference held on 12 February, that the agreement also included key provisions to ensure the professional reorientation of workers once the company closes its doors:
“It sets out the possibility for workers to have their employment profiles analysed and to receive training through the National Institute for Employment and Vocational Training and support and advice at various levels, including from the State, the Canelones and Colonia regional authorities and unions, to facilitate labour reintegration, which is so important.”
He explained that Yazaki management also corrected their statements and acknowledged in writing in the agreement that the closure was not due to alleged conflicts with the union, but rather to production costs and competitiveness. The union leader believes that Uruguay's competitive edge should be driven by quality, a genuine increase in productivity and the production capacity of labour:
“For this reason, the PIT-CNT put forward a proposal to the future government to set up a three-way negotiating mechanism involving employers, government and workers. The aim is to establish an industrial policy and diversify the production matrix, laying the foundations for a development strategy that prevents situations like this from occurring.”
At the same time, worker delegates from Yazaki’s Las Piedras and Colonia plants thanked the workers’ movement and neighbours for standing with them, highlighting workers’ struggles and the unity of the people of Uruguay.
IndustriALL Latin America regional secretary, Marino Vani, said:
“We want to congratulate the workers, our affiliate UNTMRA and the PIT-CNT for their campaign, for standing up against the abuses and unilateral dismissals that Yazaki carried out in Uruguay without prior discussions with the workers.
Once again we’ve seen that if we as workers don’t stand up and fight back there would be no dialogue, which is what made this agreement – and the economic and social benefits it provides – possible. Our struggle continues. Only by showing unity and having strong unions can we build dialogue and ensure respect for workers. Otherwise, we will become slaves.”
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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