Taking COSATU Today Forward, 21 May 2026 #HappyBirthdaySATAWU
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY COSATU Call Center Contacts: 010 002 2590 Happy Birthday #SATAWU, says #Cosatu #ClassWar #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
21 May 2026
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
Organize at every workplace and demand respect for labour rights Now!
Defend Jobs Now!
Join COSATU NOW!
Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- COSATU startled old UIF website is still live
- South Africa
- Speech for COSATU General Secretary Solly Phetoe – SATAWU Golf Day Fundraiser
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Botswana diamond firm trampling on workers’ rights
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics#ClassWar
COSATU startled old UIF website is still live
Zanele Sabela, COSATU Spokesperson, 20 May 2026
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is surprised to learn that the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) has not shut down its old website; as a result, workers are unwittingly sending their unemployment claims to a ‘dead’ website and are consequently not receiving payment.
According to GroundUp, workers who applied for unemployment benefits via the old website received confirmation that their claims were accepted along with a refence number.
It was only later after they had not received payment and followed up with the UIF office that they were advised they had used the wrong website and had to reapply.
COSATU is surprised but not shocked that the UIF did not think it necessary to shut down the old website once the new one was operational. After all, the old website was offline for months on end on several occasions in 2025. Both workers and employers were unable to access the UFilling system to lodge claims or register workers and lodge contribution schedules respectively.
COSATU has continually raised concerns about mismanagement, corruption, aging infrastructure and archaic systems at this critical social security entity. We have called for the UIF to be cleansed of corrupt elements and to be fully modernised.
The Federation has also written to the Minister of Employment and Labour, Ms. Makosazana Meth, requesting a meeting to discuss the myriad challenges at UIF.
The issue of the ‘dead’ website will be added to the list of issues to be discussed at the meeting once a date has been confirmed.
Issued by COSATU
South Africa #ClassSolidarity
Speech
for COSATU General Secretary Solly Phetoe – SATAWU Golf Day Fundraiser
Solly
Phetoe, COSATU General Secretary, 20 May 2026
Comrades, leaders, Amandla!
Let me start by greeting the leadership of SATAWU. President, General Secretary, Deputy General Secretary, Treasurer, and the entire National Office Bearers, we salute you. I greet the leadership of COSATU present here today.
I greet the leaders of our Alliance – the ANC and SACP. I greet our comrades from government. Most importantly, I greet every SATAWU shop steward, organiser, and worker who is here.
Without
you, there is no SATAWU, and there is no COSATU.
Comrades, congratulations. Congratulations to SATAWU for organising this golf day fundraiser. We know times are tough. Workers are struggling. Unions are struggling.
But
you did not sit down and cry. You stood up and raised funds. That is the spirit we need.
But comrades, let us be clear. This money is not for fancy offices. This money is not for leaders to live well. This money must be used for one thing only: to rebuild SATAWU as a militant, fighting union. A union that is on the ground. A union that services workers every single day.
A
union that makes bosses afraid and workers proud.
Why?
Because a strong and vibrant SATAWU is key to a strong and vibrant COSATU. When SATAWU is weak, COSATU is weak. When SATAWU is strong, COSATU is strong.
When
SATAWU fights, the whole Federation fights. We cannot build a powerful COSATU without a powerful SATAWU. It is as simple as that.
So what must we do?
SATAWU
must invest this money in its organisational capacity. We must take SATAWU’s membership back to 100 000 members. That is the target. 100 000 workers. Organised. United. Militant.
How do we get there?
Three things.
First, active campaigns on the ground. Not in boardrooms. On the ground. At the taxi rank. At the station. At the port. At the depot. Where workers are. Second, defend collective bargaining. No to wage freezes. No to retrenchments. No to outsourcing. We fought for collective bargaining. We will die defending it. Third, service members.
When
a member is dismissed, SATAWU must be there. When a member is not paid, SATAWU must be there. When a member is victimised, SATAWU must be there. Service is not a favour. It is our duty.
Comrades,
we must launch dedicated recruitment and servicing campaigns. Let me be specific.
One: Security guards. Thousands of security guards in this country work under terrible conditions. 12-hour shifts. No benefits. R3000 a month. Most of them are not unionised.
The
bosses exploit them because they are alone. SATAWU must go to every mall, every government building, every warehouse. Organise them. Defend them. SATAWU must become the home of security guards.
Two: Transnet. Transnet is the backbone of our economy. Without Transnet, there is no mining. No manufacturing. No agriculture. Thousands of jobs depend on it. But today Transnet is broken. Trains are not moving. Ports are delayed. Workers are suffering.
SATAWU
must run a campaign to reassert itself as the majority union at Transnet. And SATAWU must fight to ensure Transnet is returned to full capacity. This is not a Transnet issue. This is a workers’ issue. If Transnet dies, jobs die.
Three: Metro Rail. Every day, more than 10 million urban commuters use trains.
Who are they?
Workers. Domestic workers. Cleaners. Factory workers. Without trains, they cannot get to work. Without work, they cannot feed their families. But Metro Rail has collapsed. Stations are vandalised. Trains are late or cancelled. SATAWU must reassert itself as the majority union at Metro Rail. And SATAWU must fight to get Metro Rail back to full capacity. Transport is a worker issue.
Transport
is a class issue.
Four: SAA and aviation. SAA belongs to the people. Aviation is a major part of our economy. Tourism. Trade. Jobs. During Covid, they tried to kill SAA. They retrenched workers. They outsourced. SATAWU must run a campaign to reassert itself as the majority union at SAA and in the aviation industry as a whole. No worker must be left behind.
We
must defend every job in aviation.
Five: Bus drivers and taxi drivers. Our roads carry millions of workers every day. Bus drivers are overworked and underpaid. Taxi drivers have no rights. No UIF. No benefits. SATAWU must organise bus drivers. And SATAWU must work with our sister union
SATDWU to organise taxi drivers.
Whether it is a bus or a taxi, the driver is a worker. And workers must be organised.
Six: Cleaners. They clean our offices. They clean our stations. They clean our airports.
But who cleans for them?
Who
fights for them?
Most cleaners are women. Most are casualised. Most are abused. SATAWU must organise cleaners. A cleaner is not a “helper”.
A
cleaner is a worker. And workers have power.
Comrades, all these campaigns are urgent.
Why?
Because
in September, COSATU is holding its National Congress. We need an active SATAWU at that Congress. A SATAWU that is in good standing. A SATAWU that brings members.
A SATAWU that drafts resolutions. A SATAWU that reminds the whole Federation: we must be on the ground with workers. Not in hotels. On the ground.
And comrades, we need a strong SATAWU on the ground campaigning for the Alliance. Local elections are coming. They will be the most contested elections since 1994. Our enemies are organised. They want to defeat the ANC. They want to defeat the Alliance.
They want to defeat the working class. We cannot allow it. SATAWU must be in every ward, every street, every workplace. We must ensure a decisive victory for the Alliance. Because when the Alliance is in power, workers have a chance to win. When our enemies
are in power, workers lose.
Before I close, let me congratulate SATAWU. The past few years were not easy. SATAWU went through pain. Divisions. Court cases. Financial problems. But you did not die. You fought back. You stabilised. You are turning around.
That is encouraging.
That is what we mean when we say “a union is its members”.
You refused to let SATAWU die. Now you must make SATAWU live. Make SATAWU fight. Make SATAWU win.
So, comrades, take this money. Build your structures.
Train your shop stewards. Buy your organisers cars. Open offices where workers are. Go back to the depots.
Go back to the ranks. Go back to the road. Be seen. Be heard. Be felt.
The time for boardroom unionism is over. The time for militant, campaigning, servicing unionism is now.
SATAWU, the workers are waiting. COSATU is waiting. The Alliance is waiting.
The
class is waiting.
Forward with SATAWU!
Forward with COSATU!
Forward
with the Alliance!
Amandla!
Matla!
I thank you.
International-Solidarity
Botswana diamond firm trampling on workers’ rights
20 May, 2026
The Botswana Diamond Workers Union (BDWU) has declared a formal dispute at Genesis HB Botswana, a diamond cutting and polishing company wholly owned by HP Antwerp, a Belgian diamond technology company. The Botswana government holds shares in HP Antwerp as part of its efforts to give the country a bigger stake in its own diamond industry.
The union, an IndustriALL affiliate, says management is pushing through job cuts while refusing to bargain honestly with unions. Talks collapsed in mid-March. The union is now negotiating under protest as it believes the process is being abused but will not walk away and leave its members unprotected.
Management is hiding the books
At the heart of the dispute is a simple demand: show us the numbers. The union says management has refused to hand over audited accounts, wage records, company structure details and board minutes. Without this information, workers cannot assess whether the job cuts are genuinely necessary or whether alternatives exist. Section 25 of the Trade Unions and Employers Organizations Act requires management to share this information. Genesis HB is not doing so, making meaningful negotiation impossible.
Are union leaders being targeted?
Seven workers face retrenchment. Four of them sit on the union committee. The union believes this is no coincidence. Targeting union representatives to weaken workers’ collective voice is union-busting and it is illegal. The BDWU is putting management on notice that it will not let this stand.
A crisis made worse
The job cuts come at the worst possible time. Botswana’s diamond industry generates roughly 80 per cent of the country’s export earnings and funds a third of government spending and pays for schools, hospitals and public services that millions of Batswana depend on. That industry is now under severe pressure from laboratory-grown diamonds: synthetic stones that are chemically identical to mined gems but cost a fraction of the price. In just a few years they have captured an estimated 15 to 20 per cent of the global jewellery market, hitting hard on demand for natural diamonds.
Even De Beers, one of the most powerful companies in the diamond trade and Botswana’s most important industry partner, recorded a sharp drop in rough diamond sales in 2023 and has started selling laboratory-grown stones itself. This is a clear sign that the industry’s problems are deep and lasting, not temporary. In this climate, every job in the diamond value chain matters. The BDWU says management should be working with workers to find solutions not retrenching them.
What the union is demanding?
The union is calling on Genesis HB to stop the retrenchment process immediately and sit down with workers to develop a fair redundancy policy that genuinely explores alternatives to job losses. If management refuses, the union will take the dispute to the Commissioner of Labour and Social Security or apply to the Industrial Court for an urgent order to halt the process.
Workers will not be silenced
“Genesis HB thinks it can silence workers by targeting union leaders, but the union will fight back,” said Dominic Mapoka, chairperson of the BDWU.
Paule-France Ndessomin, IndustriALL Sub-Saharan Africa regional secretary, placed the dispute in its wider context.
“Diamond-dependent countries are already bleeding jobs to synthetic stones. Companies that respond by crushing unions are adding injustice to injury. Retrenchments must be handled transparently, in a way that protects both unions and jobs.”
______________________________
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