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COSATU TODAY #COSATU NOB’s will tomorrow engage with workers at train stations in Gauteng as part of mobilisation for #Cosatu40thAnniversary celebrations #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 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
25 November 2025
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
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
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
_________________________
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 scheduled to hold a post Central Executive Committee (CEC) media briefing on Thursday, 27 November 2025
Zanele Sabela, COSATU National Spokesperson, 25 November 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) will hold a media briefing on Thursday, 27 November 2025, to communicate the outcomes of its final ordinary Central Executive Committee (CEC) meeting for the year.
2025 marks a year in which the working class was tested on many fronts and a year in which the Federation has been able to secure critical victories for the working class.
This CEC takes place at a critical time for workers time with the G20 just having concluded, the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement tabled at Parliament and the Local Government Elections set for next year.
COSATU will be hosting its annual Charity Golf Challenge with President Cyril Ramaphosa on 4 December and its 40th anniversary celebrations on 6 December at Dobsonville Stadium.
COSATU will provide updates on these important issues and more at the briefing on Thursday.
The details of the media briefing are as follows:
•
Date : 27 November 2025
• Time : 11h00
• Venue : COSATU House, 110 Jorissen Street, Braamfontein.
All
members of the media are invited to the briefing.
Issued by COSATU
For more information please contact:
Zanele Sabela (COSATU National Spokesperson)
Email: zan...@cosatu.org.za
Cell: 079 287 5788
_____________________
SACP invites media to cover Central Committee post-meeting press briefing
Mbulelo Mandlana, Head of Media, Communications and Information, 2 August 2025
The South African Communist Party (SACP) Central Committee will hold its three-day plenary starting at 10AM on Friday morning, 29 August 2025.
During this plenary, the Central Committee will review reports from the SACP Political Bureau and Secretariat, as well as the Alliance, among others, related to the national and international political situation.
The Political Report, to be presented by the Party General Secretary Solly Mapaila, will serve as the pivot of all the reports to chart a way forward given the situation at hand.
The Central Committee plenary will take place at COSATU House: 110 Jorissen Street in Braamfontein, Johannesburg.
SACP Central Committee post-meeting press briefing
The SACP National Office Bearers with the Secretariat as the core will hold a press briefing led by SACP General Secretary Solly Mapaila to communicate the key outcomes of the meeting, as follows:
Date: Sunday, 31 August 2025
Time: 14H00
Venue: Cosatu House, First Floor
110 Jorissen Street
Johannesburg
The SACP invites the media to cover the press briefing.
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NEHAWU statement on International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women
Zola Saphetha, NEHAWU General Secretary, November 25, 2025
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union [NEHAWU] joins the international community in recognising the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women.
The International Day is recognised annually on the 25th of November and it is a campaign geared towards preventing and eliminating violence against women and children.
In recognising this important day, NEHAWU joins our militant, class-orientated international federation of trade unions, the World Federation of Trade Unions [WFTU] in its struggle for a world free from violence, exploitation and war.
Hence, we join the clarion call of WFTU: “80 years of international trade union struggle – Stop violence, exploitation and war. Safety, dignity and equality for all women”.
As NEHAWU, we agree with the WFTU when it asserts that the violence against women is never an individual or private matter and is rooted in the power structures of capitalism, economic and social inequalities, patriarchal culture and the militarisation of territories.
As we mark this day, women continues to face systemic oppression, exclusion and discrimination. Women are in a constant struggle against power-relations that continue to be perpetuated by patriarchy and are daily confronted with the scourge of gender based violence, femicide, rape, and violence which continues to be on the rise.
Indeed, as progressives, we must prioritise the struggle to eliminate violence directed at women and children and further condemn violence against women. We can no longer stand by and watch such atrocities occurring in our communities and wish to register that all forms of violence directed at women and children have no place in our society.
As NEHAWU, we stand in solidarity with women across the world in the struggle to eliminate violence directed at them, more in particular Palestinian Women and Children, who are subjected to the worst form of violence and human rights violations by the murderous Israeli regime.
We want to reiterate our pledge to deepen our level of consciousness and activism in the struggle for gender and women's emancipation as well as intensifying the fight against gender based violence, femicide, rape and violence directed at women and children.
Lastly, as NEHAWU, we call on society to support International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, the campaign of 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence. Let us unite and fight the scourge of gender-based violence, femicide, rape and violence directed at women and children.
END
Issued by NEHAWU Secretariat.
International-Solidarity
Education union leaders drive change, demand action, and inspire hope for Africa
Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 Fighting the commercialisation of education Standards and working conditions Leading the profession Go public! Fund education, 25 November 2025
Education leaders from the EI Africa Regional Committee (EIARC) came together to celebrate hard-won progress, tackle persistent challenges, and renew their collective resolve to champion public education. With a clear focus on urging governments to prioritize and fully fund public education, participants reaffirmed their commitment to securing quality learning for every child and upholding the rights and dignity of educators throughout Africa.
Pressing African governments to adequately fund public education and value the teaching profession
In her opening remarks during the meeting convened virtually on November 18th–19th, EIARC Chairperson, Mariama Chipkaou, noted that “this year has been rich with events related to education on the continent.”
She welcomed the new continental Education Strategy for Africa (CESA) for the decade 2026–2035 adopted at the 38th Summit of Heads of States of the African Union (AU) reporting that just a few weeks after its adoption, EI Africa (EIA) organized an online forum on CESA 26-35 to sensitize members on that new education framework. “We urge African governments to ensure full implementation of the new strategy. This must include setting up mechanisms of social and policy dialogue with teachers and their unions throughout the whole process of implementation of CESA 26-35.”
She also reminded the regional leaders that EI actively participated in the Pan African Conference on Teacher Education (PACTED) organized by the AU from October 1st-3rd, 2025, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with 52 participants representing EI member organizations in that event. The Conference recognized the urgent need for African governments to adequately finance education and invest in and recognize teachers. It also celebrated World Teachers’ Day in Africa, for the first time in history.
Alongside PACTED, EIA convened a regional learning event on the Go Public! Fund Education campaign that allowed EI member organizations to learn from each other and develop strategies to press African governments to address teacher shortages through adequate investment in education and the elevation of the status of the teaching profession.
She went on to stress that “it is our mandate to stand in solidarity with colleagues, teachers and unionists whose lives and freedom are threatened. It is our mandate to continue pressing our governments to adequately fund public education and value the teaching profession so that the African continent can enjoy peaceful development and a more just society.”
Need to convert declarations into reality
EI President, Mugwena Maluleke, also highlighted that “your presence today is a statement: when education and teachers are threatened, we will show up, we will step up.”
He also agreed that “this year marked a turning point,” adding that, “at the launch of the AU Decade of Accelerated Action for the Transformation of Education and at PACTED 2025, EI member organizations did not stand at the margins, we shaped the agenda. Foundational learning, teacher professionalism, and digital innovation: These are pillars that carry our fingerprints. The decade ahead is not a paper to be politely shelved; It is a continental commitment that demands real resources and rigorous accountability.”
The EI leader added that international instruments from the 1966 ILO/UNESCO Recommendation to the UN High-Level Panel Recommendations and the Santiago Consensus “give us moral and legal leverage. Governments have endorsed high standards. Now the question is simple, will they fund them? Too often promises stop at speeches and committees. We refuse to let commitments exist only as words.”
He went on calling EI member organizations on the African continent to commit to the Go Public! Fund Education strategy. “We need a recommitment from this meeting that our member organizations will continue to campaign, continue to fight, and then approve the resolutions of CESA implementation and solidarity with union leaders under attack.
Let's return to your countries with clear time bound action plans and continental commitment.”
He concluded: “The work is demanding, but the path is very clear. We have the roadmap, the legal standards, the campaign model, and the history of victories. Now we convert declarations into reality. Invest in teachers. Fund public education. Defend peace and rights. Lead the transformation.”
Teachers are builders of the future, wisdom workers
EI General Secretary, David Edwards, also presented on recent global developments related to education, teachers and education support personnel, underlining: “We are not spectators, we are architects, we are builders of the future, we are wisdom workers.”
Tackling the EI Go Public! Fund Education campaign, he reiterated that “there is no substitute for teachers and there are no quick fixes for the global teacher shortage. Governments must go public and fund education.”
He further reminded that Africa is the region most affected by the teacher shortage. Out of the 50 million teachers missing worldwide, 15 million are needed in Sub-Saharan Africa alone. “But this is also why Africa is the region of the world where our campaign is most active and most widely implemented. EI member organizations across Africa are being supported by EI to develop their national campaigns and engage their governments on education, financing and investment in teachers. We have to keep going and to expand the campaign at all levels from the local to the global.”
Mentioning the Santiago Consensus, which “demonstrates the power of organized teachers speaking with one voice,” M. Edwards said that this Consensus enshrines a principle EI has fought to establish: recognizing the teacher-student relationship as part of humanity's common heritage. “This is more than symbolic recognition—it's a commitment to preserving human connection in education against the encroachment of purely technological approaches. Education is NOT content delivery.”
M. Edwards also underlined that another essential development to be aware of is the upcoming revision of the 1966 and 1997 Recommendations concerning the status of teaching personnel. “The revision will be an essential opportunity for us to strengthen the recommendations and ensure that they reflect the reality of teaching in the 21st century.”
Reminding that on October 10th, World Mental Health Day, EI launched its new Health and Well-being Network and a resource center in partnership with the French MGEN, he explained that “the new Network on Health and Well-being replaces the Education and Solidarity Network. It will also connect EI member organizations and partners around the world to enable them to share experiences and strategies to promote the well-being of teachers and education support personnel. Teacher well-being and students’ wellbeing are linked.”
Insisting on the “longstanding commitment for EI” that is the fight against child labor, he stressed that “this is outstanding work and you should all be immensely proud. Across 6 countries in Africa, education union programs against child labor are delivering life-changing results. In 2024 alone, over 1,880 former child laborers have been returned to classrooms in project areas in Burundi, Malawi, Mali, Togo, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. Every one of those students count, every one of them was welcomed back to school.”
While COP30 is happening in Amazonia, Brazil, he said: “I am proud that our profession understands the threat of climate change and has mobilized for quality climate change education for all and a just transition to a green economy.”
The EI General Secretary concluded: “Your concerns resonate with colleagues around the world. Your fight inspires teachers in other countries to rise, to oppose injustice, and to build a better future for all. In this fight for our profession, for its soul and dignity, we stand together. Education International is fully committed to supporting you, just as you have always supported EI and teachers everywhere.”
Gains made despite challenging context
For EIA Director, Dr. Dennis Sinyolo, the EIA vision is for it to be “an effective, vibrant, and responsive EI Region united for inclusive quality public education and educators’ rights,” with a mission “to unite and mobilize teachers and education support personnel in Africa to defend and promote professional and education rights.”
Given the context in which EIA affiliates operate, he reported that, on the continent, governments are not investing sufficiently in education. On average, they are investing 3.8% of GDP or 14.5% of the national budget instead of 6% of GDP and 20% of the national budget respectively.
However, Dr. Sinyolo assured that “there is good news,” and that “we have achieved a lot despite these challenges.”
Coming back on EI African affiliates’ contribution to the PACTED, he said: “I am very proud that our relationship with the African Union has improved tremendously from the time they were afraid of unions, that they did not even want to involve us anyway because they thought would be disruptive. We will continue to nest that relationship. Of course, we need to do more, particularly in establishing a similar kind of institutionalized relationship with regional economic communities.”
“Our evidence was very clear, and that evidence helped us to influence the African Union. That propositional approach helped even when they did the first draft of the new strategy. We brought it back to our members who commented on it in a workshop that involved also young members. And we took the feedback back to the African Union.” This demonstrates that “when we engage in dialogue with intergovernmental organizations in a consistent manner, when we campaign, when we engage in advocacy using evidence, then they listen to us,” he said.
Also highlighting the need to promote the UN recommendations on the teaching profession, he gave the positive example of progress made by the EI Go Public! Fund Education campaign in Zimbabwe, where the union, ZIMTA was able to mobilize Members of Parliament in the Parliament itself a week before they were going to debate the national budget. When the MPs met the following week with the Minister of Finance to input into the national budget, they demanded more investment in education. “And the result was a jump in the allocation from about 14% of the national budget to over 20%. That is phenomenal!”
Dr. Sinyolo further said that EIA lobbied governments to adopt and implement the Safe Schools Declaration an important intergovernmental tool. He informed about the upcoming global meeting focusing on this important Declaration to be held in Nairobi, Kenya.
The EIA office also launched a study on the impact of conflict and attacks on teachers, he reported, encouraging Committee members to respond to the survey.
“EI Global is on the move and EI Africa as part of the global is on the move. We should be proud of the achievements made by our global organization in Africa. We have made great strides in contributing to that success story.
He also welcomed the fact that, while “our member organizations continue to provide services as a way of recruitment, they are shifting towards organizing. We have seen a creation of structures for young members in several countries, an amendment of union constitutions to accommodate more women and young members.”
Fifth EI World Women’s Conference
EI Deputy General Secretary Haldis Holst further briefed the Committee about the upcoming 5th EI World Women’s Conference (WWC) to take place in Bahia, Brazil, from September 15th- 17th, 2026.
She started by commending EI African affiliates for achievements made in the region with regards to gender equality and encouraging to increase the number of 11 countries that have already ratified the International Labour Organization’s Convention on Violence and Harassment (C190).
She also reminded that the online conference in 2022 was very important with 1358 participants, reaching a higher number of participants than when the WWC meets in person.
She explained that “we titled the online conference Using Women's Power for Change, a festival of ideas, experiences and strategies to achieve gender equality in and through education unions. We must constantly change, all of us, and we must use the capacities of all of us, not just half of us. We also need women’s power for change.”
She also noted that the previous in person World Women's Conference was held in the African region, in Marrakech, Morocco, in 2018.
She went on encouraging member organizations to send young women trade unionists to the 5th WWC, acknowledging that WWCs are EI’s global conferences with the most participants participating in an EI conference for the first time. “It is an amazing recruitment area for people to get to know EI and get the taste of perhaps something they want to continue with. This means that we want to open the doors, make sure that we have people that may not know EI so well before to come and take part and hopefully be motivated to continue within EI.”
She also informed that the EI Status of Women's Committee will have a discussion on the 5th WWC’s theme in December, “finding out what are the common points being proposed by the different regional women networks, and how this can be put into an overarching theme that has focus and at the same time is broad enough to have interest for all EI member organizations.”
Policy Brief on Artificial Intelligence and Education in Africa
During the meeting’s second day, the education union leaders approved a Policy Brief on Artificial Intelligence and Education in Africa.
Introducing the document, EI’s Dr. Pedi Anawi strongly emphasized that “education is primarily relational, not transactional.”
He went on to note that “EI believes that new technologies like AI provide exciting possibilities to enhance the quality of education. However, the policy stresses that these new technologies must not replace the teacher nor in-person in-class instruction.”
“We need to be careful, because this technology can worsen existing inequalities in various areas - including labor markets, education, and access to services. We must ensure that AI initiatives are inclusive and adhere to ethical standards,” he concluded.
These promises, challenges and dangers related to the use of AI in education will be debated further at the EI Global Conference on AI on December 4th-5th, 2025.
EIARC Resolutions
Two significant resolutions were also adopted by EIARC.
The first one, presented by EI Africa Vice-President Richard Gundane, calls for the full implementation of the new Continental Education Strategy for Africa by the African Union and African governments.
It draws on “the acknowledgement expressed in CESA 26-35 that investing in education is one of the best investments countries can make, and that education contributes to the ability of individuals to exercise other human rights.”
It also stresses the need to make the teaching profession attractive by guaranteeing labor rights and ensuring good working conditions, including manageable workloads and competitive salaries for teachers and education workers; valuing them, respecting them, ensuring they are central to decision-making, and trusting their pedagogical expertise as stated in the second Strategic Area of CESA 2026-2035.
Through this document, EIARC calls on:
The second resolution adopted, reaffirming solidarity with union leaders and members under attack in Africa, recognizes “the vital role of education unions in defending the rights of educators, promoting quality education, and advancing social justice across Africa.”
Presented by Hélène Nekarmbaye, member of the global EI Executive Board for Africa, it unequivocally condemns “all forms of violence, intimidation, harassment, and attacks against union leaders and members in Africa,” it also reaffirms “unwavering solidarity with all union leaders and members facing threats or attacks as a result of their legitimate trade union activities, including strike action.”
It goes on calling on all African governments “to respect, protect, and fulfil the rights of education unions and their members, including the right to organize, bargain collectively, and participate in industrial action without fear of reprisal.”
It also encourages international and regional bodies, including the AU, to take concrete action to protect union rights and to hold governments accountable for violations.
This EIARC meeting clearly demonstrated the unwavering commitment of education union leaders across the continent. Their collective voice has not only shaped the agenda for the future of African education but also demanded that governments move beyond promises to real, measurable action.
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Indian government commits to support social dialogue in ship recycling
25 November, 2025
At a round table meeting held in Delhi on 25 November, the Indian minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Mansukh Mandaviya, committed to improving conditions in the ship recycling industry.
The round table was attended by representatives of the ILO, IndustriALL, the directorate general of shipping, SMEFI, the ship recycling union ASSRGWA, and their confederation, Hind Mazdoor Sabha (HMS). Opening the meeting, IndustriALL regional secretary Ashutosh Bhattacharya spoke about the progress made in improving ship recycling, which was achieved through cooperation and social dialogue between unions, employers, federal and local government.
ILO deputy director Satoshi Sasaki described the entry into force of the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) as a transformative moment for the decent work agenda. He noted that the HKC does not exist in isolation, and that to successfully transform the industry, it needs to be considered in conjunction with an eco-system of international instruments, including the Basel Convention, ILO Core Conventions, ILO guidelines on shipbreaking and the newly created guidelines on recycling.
Harbhajan Singh, the general secretary of HMS, spoke forcefully about the ongoing problems still faced by ship recycling workers. Although safety has improved, very few yards are providing health checks, and occupation illness remains a major problem. Another serious issue is the precarious nature of the work, which also affects workers’ housing. Since accommodation is provided by the employer, many workers find themselves homeless when there is no work.
Union representatives spoke about the need of the different departments of the Indian government, including the labour and environment ministries, and the directorate general of shipping, to coordinate better, and to create a structure that includes unions in decision making about the industry.
Although there is good level of consensus-based social dialogue between the union, the employers’ federation SRIA, and the local authority the GMB, there is a need to formalize this through an industry-wide agreement covering wages, time off and other terms and conditions.
It is also important to extend protections to the estimated 500,000 informal workers in the downstream industry.
The union side submitted policy suggestions for improving the industry:
Ratification of ILO Conventions 155 and 187. This would give workers the right to refuse unsafe work, and create a framework for joint health and safety committees.
Develop a national Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) programme for ship recycling. A standardized OSH programme, benchmarked against the HKC and environmental standards, would strengthen yard-level joint health and safety committees.
Create a digital OSH and worker welfare platform. This would capture data about accidents and near misses, and maintain a record of workers’ health, providing the data needed to manage workers’ welfare.
Social protection for informal workers. Workers in the downstream industry are not protected by the HKC and have no employment protections. There should be a pathway to formalization, with the development of a social security scheme being an important first step.
Minister Mandaviya, who was born in Bhavnagar near the ship recycling port of Alang and is currently a member of parliament for the region, responded that he had a deep commitment to improving conditions for the workers.
He committed to visiting Alang and holding meetings with all stakeholders to address the issues faced by workers.
Says IndustriALL director for shipbreaking and shipbuilding Walton Pantland:
“India has the potential to be a beacon for the safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships. But there is still work to be done: the Hong Kong Convention must be fully implemented, and workers must be involved in decision making at all levels. An industry wide collective agreement would be transformative in creating decent work.”
______________________________
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