Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin, 17 November 2025 #Cosatu@40 #Cosatu40thAnniversary
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #Cosatu scheduled to participate in #G20SocialSummit at Boksburg tomorrow #VioletSeboniBrigade #Cosatu40thAnniversary #COP30noBrasil#JustTransition #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
17 November 2025
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- SAMWU media briefing on City of Johannesburg PFA payments due to workers
- NEIL AGGETT LABOUR STUDIES UNIT (NALSU): Annual Neil Aggett Labour Studies Lecture
- Applications for media accreditation to cover COSATU 40th Anniversary rally officially opened
- COSATU to host lectures in the lead up to 40th anniversary
- South Africa
- South Africa hosts G20 Social Summit
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Education International supports union renewal in Lebanon
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
SAMWU media briefing on City of Johannesburg PFA payments due to workers
Thobani Nkosi, SAMWU Petrus Mashishi Regional Secretary, 17 November 2025
The South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU) in Johannesburg (Petrus Mashishi Region) will on Tuesday 18 November brief the media on the progress in relation to the Politically Facilitated Agreement (PFA) negotiations with the City of Johannesburg. The briefing will also respond to the misleading articles over the weekend that the Union “blackmailed” the City into paying workers billions.
Members of the media are therefore invited to attend and cover the briefing which will be held as follows:
Date : 18 November 2025
Time : 10am
Venue: SAMWU House, 84 Frederick Street, Marshalltown, Johannesburg.
Issued by SAMWU Petrus Mashishi (Johannesburg) Region
Thobani Nkosi
Regional Secretary
066 290 2134
Or
Richard Moila
Deputy Regional Secretary
073 172 9459
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Neil
Aggett Labour Studies Unit (NALSU): Annual Neil Aggett Labour Studies Lecture
Dinga Sikwebu, "COSATU@40: Decades of political alignment and entanglement"
SEMINAR & WEBINAR: 4PM, Thursday 20 November 2025, Graham Hotel, 123 High Street, Makhanda, South Africa & via Zoom (details below).
ALL WELCOME
With COSATU approaching its 40th anniversary, this lecture examines the federation's long history of political alignment. Founded in December 1985, the federation became one of the world’s fastest growing union movements. It also demonstrated a remarkable dynamism
and bottom-up worker politics. When the ANC and SACP were unbanned in 1990, the federation was at the heart of the mass democratic movement. To gain political influence, COSATU opted to be part of the Tripartite Alliance with the two organisations.
This lecture probes the efficacy of COSATU's political alignment strategy, including the original Alliance model, deployment of unionists onto election lists and repeated calls for workers to “swell the ranks of the ANC”. The lecture evaluates COSATU strategies
to push for pro-working class policies through its alignment with the ANC, attempts to build a left axis with the SACP, as well as battles for Alliance reconfiguration. Beyond this, it examines deeper conceptual framings that underpin the strategy, including
the understanding of politics and of unionism itself.
SPEAKER: Dinga Sikwebu is a retired trade unionist based in Johannesburg. He worked for 25-years as the head of education at the head office of the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (NUMSA). Presently, he is a Global Labour University (GLU) Research
Associate at the University of the Witwatersrand.
JOINING ONLINE: If you are attending this blended event online, please register in advance at:
https://tinyurl.com/2cuekuw5
THE LECTURE: The Annual Neil Aggett Labour Studies Lecture is named in honour of Dr Neil Aggett, union organiser and medical doctor who died in 1982 in an apartheid jail. It is hosted by NALSU, Rhodes' University’s departments of Economics & Economic
History and Sociology & Industrial Sociology. It is partnered with NALSU’s Vuyisile Mini Workers School, and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (FES) project.
ABOUT NALSU: Based in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, the Neil Aggett Labour Studies Unit (NALSU) at Rhodes University is engaged in policy, research, and workers' education, has a democratic, non-sectarian, non-aligned, and pluralist practice, and active
relations with a range of advocacy, labour, and research organisations. We draw strength from our location in a province where the legacy of apartheid and the cheap labour system, and post-apartheid contradictions, are keenly felt.
MORE: http://www.ru.ac.za/nalsu
Kind regards,
Valance
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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
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COSATU to host lectures in the lead up to 40th anniversary
Zanele Sabela, COSATU National Spokesperson, 25 September 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is set the host a series of lectures in the lead up to its 40th anniversary celebration at Dobsonville Stadium on 6 December.
The culmination of four years of unity talks, COSATU came into being on 1 December 1985, and brought together 33 competing unions and federations opposed to apartheid and whose common goal was to bring about a non-racial, non-sexist and democratic society.
The Federation has been at the forefront of advancing, defending and protecting the interests and rights of workers since, and has led in the formation of the country’s progressive labour laws including workers’ rights to form trade unions, collective bargaining and to strike, minimum conditions of service, National Minimum Wage, etc.
From its vehement resistance of apartheid to the ushering in of the democratic dispensation and improving the economic and social wellbeing of the working class 31 years post democracy, COSATU has stood the test of time.
In the lead up to its 40th anniversary in December, the Federation will host a variety of activities starting with a series of lectures by its National Office Bearers.
The lectures will tackle diverse subjects from COSATU’s pivotal role in gender struggles to the strike that broke the back of industry-wide exploitative labour practices as far back as 1959.
Province:
North-West
Date:
19 November
Topic: Strengthening Industrial Unions to build a militant COSATU
Main Speaker: Duncan Luvuno, COSATU 2nd Deputy President
Province:
Eastern Cape
Date:
20 November
Topic: COSATU and the Reconfiguration of the Alliance
Main Speaker: Gerald Twala, COSATU Deputy General Secretary
Province:
Gauteng
Date:
21 November
Topic: COSATU and the Mass Democratic Movement
Main Speaker: Zingiswa Losi, COSATU President
Issued by COSATU
NUM Statement on DRC Cobalt Mine Tragedy: A Call for Accountability and Safety
Mpho Phakedi, NUM General Secretary, 17 November 2025
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) conveys its deepest and most profound condolences to the families and communities affected by the devastating bridge collapse at a cobalt mine in Lualaba province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), last Saturday.
This tragedy, which resulted in the confirmed deaths of 32 informal miners, is a heartbreaking reminder of the extreme risks workers face daily. Our thoughts remain with the recovery teams as the search continues for any miners who may still be missing in the flooded pit.
Urgent Demand for Investigation
NUM General Secretary Mpho Phakedi stated: "One death is one death too many. The sheer scale of this loss, compounded by the alleged unsafe construction of a makeshift bridge across a flooded trench, demands immediate and comprehensive action. We call on the DRC government to launch an urgent, transparent investigation to determine the root cause of this disaster and ensure all those responsible are held fully accountable."
Condemnation of Unsafe Practices
This incident throws a harsh light on the unregulated and dangerous conditions prevalent in the DRC's cobalt sector, which produces over 70% of the world's supply—a critical component in batteries for electric vehicles, laptops, and mobile phones.
The NUM strongly condemns:
• Hazardous Working Conditions: The reliance on makeshift, dangerous infrastructure that leads to mass fatalities.
• The Estimated 200,000+ Informal Miners working in giant, often illegal, mines without proper safety protocols or protections.
• The Pervasive Issues of Child Labour and Corruption, which continue to cast a shameful shadow over the DRC's mineral wealth.
Global Commitment to Zero Harm
While this tragedy occurred in the DRC, the safety of all miners across the continent is the NUM's core mandate.
"As the NUM, we reiterate our call to all miners in South Africa and across Africa to exercise their right to refuse to work in dangerous conditions," added Phakedi. "The NUM will continue to fight relentlessly for the principle of Zero Harm and Zero Fatalities throughout South Africa and the African continent."
The exploitation of the DRC's mineral wealth must no longer be at the cost of human lives or fuel the decades-long conflicts that have ravaged the country's eastern region. Safety and human dignity must come before profit.
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South Africa hosts G20 Social Summit
17 Nov 2025
South Africa will host the G20 Social Summit from 18 to 20 November 2025 at the Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng Province.
Under the overarching theme “Solidarity, Equality and Sustainability,” South Africa’s G20 Presidency reflects the nation’s strategic priorities of inclusive growth, poverty reduction, and the building of a capable, ethical, and developmental state.
In keeping with the G20 theme of Solidarity, Equality, and Sustainability, the G20 Social Summit will convene formal and informal networks, including youth movements, women’s organisations, faith-based groups, organisations of persons with disabilities, community forums, and other grassroots structures.
Together, they will engage on global issues that directly impact people’s daily lives.
Building on Brazil’s innovative introduction of the G20 Social Summit, President Cyril Ramaphosa has committed to continuing and expanding this people-centred platform during South Africa’s Presidency.
The G20 Social Summit seeks to elevate issues of social development, equity, and inclusion to the same level of priority as macroeconomic and financial matters.
The G20 Social Summit will bring together a wide spectrum of stakeholders including governments, civil society, labour, youth, women, persons with disabilities, philanthropy, and grassroots organisations ensuring that the lived experiences of ordinary people shape the outcomes of the G20 process.
To lead the organisation and facilitation of the G20 Social Summit, President Ramaphosa appointed Minister in the Presidency Ms Khumbudzo Ntshavheni and former Deputy President Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka as Co-Convenors, representing both government and civil society sectors.
Their mandate included overseeing stakeholder engagement and ensuring alignment between the Social Summit and the broader G20 priorities.
Designed as an inclusive and participatory platform, the Summit will amplify the voices of civil society, grassroots organisations, and communities from across the world. It aims to foster global solidarity, advance inclusive development, and deliver a G20 Social Declaration that captures the aspirations and lived realities of citizens particularly the most vulnerable.
This initiative provides South Africa with a unique opportunity to foreground the African Agenda and advance the priorities of the Global South within the world’s premier forum for international economic cooperation.
There are 13 official G20 Engagement Groups that serve as vital channels for diverse sectors to contribute to the G20’s policy and decision-making processes.
Throughout the year, these groups met to develop proposals and communiqués that inform G20 outcomes, ensuring that voices beyond government are meaningfully heard and considered.
The 13 official G20 Engagement Groups are:
W20 (Women)
L20 (Labour)
B20 (Business)
T20 (Think Tanks)
C20 (Civil Society)
SAI20 (Supreme Audit Institutions)
Y20 (Youth)
U20 (Urban)
S20 (Science)
Startup20
J20 (Judiciary/Supreme Courts)
O20 (Ocean)
P20 (Parliament)
G20 EMPOWER Alliance
Each of these engagement groups represents a distinct constituency from business and labour to youth, women, academia, and civil society bringing diverse perspectives and expertise to enrich the G20 agenda and strengthen global cooperation.
Deputy President Paul Mashatile will address the opening ceremony and people’s conversations on Tuesday, 18 November 2025. The ceremony will commence after mid-day at 13h00 at the Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng Province.
On Day 2 , Wednesday , 19 November 2025 , the G20 Social Summit engagement groups will break away into thematic sessions on Digital Inclusion and Equitable Transformation; Trade, Resilience & Inclusive Value Chains ; Inclusive Climate Justice; a Just Transition, and Energy Democracy; A Just and Sustainable Finance and International Financial Architecture; Building Momentum for the Achievement of the SDGs and Agenda 2063 ; Digital Inclusion and Equitable Transformation ; Trade, Resilience & Inclusive Value Chains ; Inclusive Climate Justice, a Just Transition, and Energy Democracy; A Just and Sustainable Finance and International Financial Architecture ; and Building Momentum for the Achievement of the SDGs and Agenda 2063.
President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Thursday, 20 November 2025, address the closing ceremony of the G20 Social Summit and receive the declaration from participating delegates over the 3 day convention.
The Federative Republic of Brazil, as member of the G20 Troika will also participate in the closing ceremony which will commence at 11h00 at the Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng Province.
Issued by The Presidency
International-Solidarity
Sub Saharan Africa unions reflect on Congress
17 November, 2025
For Sub Saharan African (SSA) unions, organizing for a just future IndustriALL 4th Congress theme, Sydney, Australia, 4-7 November, provided a timely opportunity to reflect on building union power and how to influence national industrial policies amid rapid changes caused by climate disruptions and digital transformation.
The unions said the theme prompted them to envision several mobilisation campaigns to defend workers’ and trade union rights, foster job creation and security, demand living wages, create green jobs, uphold fair trade, advance sustainable industrial policies, and champion industrialisation. They said campaigns must prioritise equity, reskilling, and local beneficiation while embedding gender equality as one of the cornerstones.
The Congress was held at a moment when SSA is confronting a pivotal crossroads with surging global demand for critical minerals — copper, cobalt, lithium, nickel, and rare earths — vital for electric vehicles and renewable energy technologies. The unions argued that channelling these riches into domestic industrialisation via beneficiation unlocks job creation potential and economic vitality while enforcing human rights due diligence.
Renewable energy production will also create green jobs. Unions said there should be emphasis on upskilling and reskilling of affected coal mineworkers in the case of thermal power station closures in South Africa and other countries.
SSA’s youth bulge, 78 per cent of the population under 35, per UN and World Bank data, holds potential as a demographic dividend. But high unemployment, trapping youth in precarious informal work, could squander it entirely. Unions thus support formalisation which will legitimise artisanal and small-scale mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, alongside Kenya’s roadside auto artisans and Nigeria’s tailoring shops, to transform informal work into equitable, rights-secured formal economies.
While digital transformation will disrupt industries through automation and artificial intelligence, it will also benefit unions as they adopt digital tools of organizing and mapping industry supply chains. Meanwhile, intra-African trade which is promoted by the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) emerges as a potential alternative for textiles and garments, reeling from US tariffs that have imploded factories and loom over Lesotho with 40,000 job losses. The non-renewal of the US African Growth and Opportunity Act has dire consequences for industries in Kenya. Regional trade and African industrialization could stitch back resilience and livelihoods, argued the unions. The unions’ arguments resonate with the theme for the African Industrialization Week (AIW2025) which is:
“Transforming Africa’s economy through sustainable industrialization, regional integration, and innovation.”
In Nigeria, unions are demanding living wages and respect for trade union rights from employers and the federal government. They continue to confront Dangote Industries over union busting.
Mpho Phakedi, National Union of Mineworkers general secretary said:
“Trade unions must push for industrial policies that promote beneficiation and localization instead of raw material exports, job losses, and employment. Global solidarity and campaigns against multinational corporations like Rio Tinto, Glencore and Sibanye, are important to unions’ fighting back and protecting workers’ rights.”
“For textile and garment workers, adapting our industries will require us to deal with new technologies which can improve industrial sustainability and competitiveness,”
said Bonita Loubser, Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union (SACTWU) general secretary. She urged technological
adoption that empowers women through equal training and leadership development.
Prince William Akporeha, Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas workers (NUPENG) president, said a just future is built upon defending workers’ rights:
“We continue to fight for workers’ rights in Nigeria through social dialogue and legal action where necessary.”
“We hail Congress’s bold resolutions on youth, feminism, and trade as they address SSA’s core struggles. We are a continent of young workers and must address their concerns and interests. Feminism supercharges ILO Convention 190 to end violence and harassment in the world of work while fair trade ignites our region’s growth imperative,” said Rose Omamo, IndustriALL vice president.
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Education International supports union renewal in Lebanon
Union renewal and development Solidarity in emergencies, 17 November 2025
Education International continues to stand with its Lebanese affiliates, not only in moments of crisis but in the long journey of union rebuilding and renewal. Throughout the year, EI member organisations from 16 countries responded generously to the Urgent Action Appeal (UAA) launched by EI in October 2024 to support its affiliates in Lebanon. This solidarity comes at a critical time, as teacher unions across the country continue to grapple with the compounded effects of regional war and economic collapse.
“Together, we are restoring union spaces of hope, dignity, and collective strength, and reaffirming our shared commitment to unions’ strength and independence,” said David Edwards, EI General Secretary.
Over the past year, many union premises in Lebanon were repurposed to meet urgent humanitarian needs, including hosting displaced families and refugees. These acts of compassion reflect the deep social commitment of Lebanon’s teacher unions. However, they also left offices damaged and essential equipment unusable. In other cases, union facilities were directly impacted by conflict or deteriorated due to the country’s prolonged economic crisis. Today, unions face the urgent task of rehabilitating their headquarters to resume vital services such as member meetings, training programs, administrative support, and advocacy work.
“The goal of this continued coordinated support is not merely to repair buildings, but to restore the capacity of unions to serve their members, advocate for educators’ rights, and defend quality public education. Union offices are more than physical spaces, they are the heart of collective action, professional development, and democratic engagement,” said Manal Hdaife, of the Primary Teachers Union (PPSTLL) and Chair of EI’s Arab Countries Cross-Unit Structure.
The restoration needs presented by the five EI affiliates in Lebanon vary in scope, but they share common priorities: repairing structural damage, electrical maintenance, replacing damaged or outdated equipment, and acquiring basic IT infrastructure to reconnect with members and partners. Several unions also emphasized the need to reestablish internet access, printing and photocopying capabilities to ensure safe and functional workspaces.
In a message from the newly elected committee of the Association of Vocational and Technical Education Teachers (CETO), the union highlighted the financial strain they face: “Our association relies solely on teachers’ subscriptions for income. Given the difficult economic and living conditions, and the war that Lebanon has experienced, many members have been unable to pay their dues. Subscription levels remain very low, while the cost of living continues to rise.”
Despite these challenges, what unites all the affiliates is a shared message of resilience and gratitude. Each organisation has expressed heartfelt appreciation for EI’s solidarity and the support of its global membership. This assistance is more than financial: it is a reaffirmation of the values that bind the international education union movement: solidarity, mutual support, democratic engagement, and the unwavering belief in the power of collective union action.
With this renewed support, Lebanon’s teacher unions are not only rebuilding their physical spaces, but they are also reclaiming their role as strong, independent institutions ready to defend educators’ rights and contribute to the broader struggle for social justice and educational equity.
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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