Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin, 3 June 2022
Norman Mampane
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#2022YearofWorkersParliament COSATU affiliates are preparing for a National Gender Conference scheduled for June 2022 #InternalDemocracy #WorkerControl #EndChildLabour #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
Friday, 3 June 2022
‘Deepen
the Back to Basics Campaign, Consolidate the Struggle for the NDR and Advance the Struggle for Socialism’
All workers urged to take Covid19 vaccine jabs!
Organize at every workplace and demand Personal Protective Equipment Now!
Defend Jobs Now!
Join COSATU NOW!
Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- Progressive Youth Alliance [PYA] Youth Month Statement
- South Africa
- POPCRU on the crime statistics
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
Ø Building social protection for garment workers
- "Workers need a strong, independent voice"
- UNI Global Union concerned over merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard, as video game workers are set to meet in Berlin
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
Progressive Youth Alliance [PYA] Youth Month Statement
03 June 2022.
“Intensify youth mobilisation for youth safety and decent jobs for youth”.
The Progressive Youth Alliance composed of ANCYL, COSAS, COSATU YWF, SASCO and YCLSA jointly representing the vast majority of young people, the employed, unemployed, learners and students in this country will embark on a joint youth month programme. It remains our firm view that the untransformed nature of property relations is at the center of the fundamental challenges confronting the youth. The young people bare the most brunt of the crises of the South African society and economy, the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty and underdevelopment.
These crises are further exacerbated by the neoliberal austerity measures on the economic policy characterized by servicing international debt, sales of public productive assets and cutting on public spending on social services like education and health etc.
South Africa’s National Treasury is undoubtedly one of the most untransformed and concerning department post the 1994 democratic transition. The institution harbours the most reactionary intellectual-moral based on capitalist neo-liberal ethics undoubtedly enforced by a leadership that lacks vision and touch with reality. This has led to policy postures that are anti-working class and anti-youth!
The Progressive Youth Alliance will in remembrance and resemblance of the courage, bravery and sacrifices of the 1976 generation observe these 46 years since 1976 with a 46 days long programme of action to raise and amplify the voice of the youth for the battle of youth development as an integral part for human development.
Gender based violence and femicide
Collectively, the Progressive Youth is aggrieved by the forever rising number of gender based violence and femicide statistics. We recognize and properly characterize the GBVF incidents in this country which its victims are mainly young people as a pandemic. The slaughtering of women in South Africa is at its highest provided the latest statistics by the Police Ministry, even the Police Minister acknowledges that South Africa is the most unsafe society.Women and children are exploited by nature as they are already excluded from an active participation in the mainstream economy and in the cooporate sector. The PYA urges all law enforcement agencies to perform their function of protecting the inhabitants of this land especially women and children. The PYA further calls upon all men in South Africa to play a central role in assuring the safety of Women and Children.
On the role of the reserve bank in addressing the state of youth unemployment, underdevelopment, poverty and inequality in the country.
The 2021 4th quarterly labor force survey reveals that the unemployment rate has increased to an unprecedented level since 2008. The reserve bank does not seem to come to foyer in terms of job creation as one of its primary objectives. The central bank places much of its attention on monetary policy of interest rates and other things whereas there are over two thirds of the youth in the country who are unemployed and unemployable due to lack of skills and its business as usual. We call on the Reserve bank to take drastic action to invest in job creating endeavors to eradicate poverty, inequality through increased labor absorption rate especially of young people in the country.
Demand for Access to Universities and TVET colleges through consistent funding of NSFAS
The crisis of youth unemployment is largely characterized by skills mismatch or lack thereof. The National Development plan set a target of about 5% of increase for the student intake in institutions of higher learning and TVETs colleges, however, we observe a decline on the students funded by NSFAS when we compare the current financial year with the previous. This is despite the fact that the need for higher education space increases annually as learners complete matric. The PYA calls for free, compulsory and quality education for all. Education should be free in both monetary terms and free from the ideological stranglehold of capital from the curriculum. We need a curriculum which responds to the political economy of our communities.
We have noted that part of the factors that bottle-neck transformation and broadened access to higher education is low infrastructure development in the sector. The fact that the democratic government has only established only two universities with a low intake since the democratic breakthrough is a serious indictment to our transformation agenda. This is the case while the ANC 54th National Conference resolved that Human Settlement to allocate adequate funding to student accommodation in order to assist in expanding access to the sector.
We call on the regulation of the pricing structure of the student accommodation because majority still charge exorbitantly way above the NSFAS accommodation allocation. We further call on the local municipalities to take responsibility for the student accommodation by making available facilities to increase the provision of decent accommodation for students in their localities.
On Youth development, increased funding for youth enterprises and cooperative development and access to markets.
The Progressive Youth Alliance notes with dismay that over a decade since the approval of the youth employment accord that place among others the duty to set aside funding and procurement for the youth to support youth enterprises. It remains our considered view that small enterprises employ majority of the national workforce and thus there is ought to be a concerted effort to invest funding to small medium enterprises especially the ones owned by the youth. We call on DFIs to fund youth business and that 30% of youth set asides to be part of their KPIs and audit requirements. Young people must be persistent in their entrepreneurial endeavors in the context of Letsema campaign and take responsibility for the struggle for economic freedom in our lifetime.
One other key issue to young people is the issue of high data costs, considering the nature and character of South African’s telecommunications sector. The decision to sell our spectrum must be relooked as this process will benefit the monopolies in terms of data bundles procurement as an accumulation path rather than an opportunity to improve and invest in infrastructure development to ensure access by rural and poor communities.
On Land reform through land expropriation without compensation and introduction of wealth tax.
In our view, the land question is strategic and important in advancing the transformational agenda of our revolution and correcting the “imbalances of the past” which continues to haunt the present unequal society. The land question is also important in developing South Africa’s productive capacity in a way that does not only benefit a few and rather mobilizes the majority as active participants in the economy.
We call on all political parties especially those who claim to be pro-working class, to put their ideological differences aside and support the Expropriation Bill in their majority which will enable the constitutional amendment for land expropriation. This will significantly disrupt the racialized poverty in the country that culminated from colonialization and land dispossession.
The demand for public and private sector investment in skills development, reskilling and upskilling young workers in the face of the automated workplace and the right to work.
The Progressive Youth Alliance is alive to the developments in the world of work and thus a need for continuous skills development, reskilling and upskilling of workers. We call on the government to properly channel the funds accumulated from the skills development levy of the toiling masses of the land. We support and commend the investigations into the National Skills Funds which obviously these resources are meant to assist in addressing the skills deficit.
We are well aware that the private sector is withholding the funds allocated for skills development and diving for the SETA funding while they take the funds for themselves as profits. We call for the development of the skills of the workers cognizant of the fact that lack thereof informs these rampant retrenchments we are observing in the country for which young people naturally falls prey because of the Last-In First-Out principle in usage.
We call on the end of moratorium in all government levels and filling of those vacancies should be through proper recruitment process and appointment of capable candidates. The PYA rejects vehemently the reduction of staff composition as proposed by regulations of COGTA in municipal political offices planned to take effect from 1 July 2022 as there was no thorough consultation within the alliance. The regulations seek to reduce the staff compliment in the offices of the executive mayors and part of those functionaries eliminated are youth development officers, disability officers, special programme officers among others without a proper plan to undertake the functions attached to those offices.
The PYA calls for the absorption of all Community Health Workers, Community Service Nurses, Doctors, and Pharmacists. The government must also appropriately compensate the community services nurses instead of paying them as student nurses. We call on the government to scrap all contractual work and EPWP for decent employment opportunities. We call on the government to scrap the requirement of experience on the entry level posts and make each work place a training space by allowing work integrated learning and mentorship programmes in their institutions to afford the youth space to gather experience and the knowhow.
The PYA will embark on campaigns and activities to commemorate and celebrate the 1976 generation. We shall roll-out interactions with various youth sectors across the country and will join the national youth Day commemorations in Eastern Cape on June 16, 2022. We will convene a Youth Month rally in Free State on June 26, 2022 as part of celebrating the freedom charter day and close the youth month in July 16, 2022 through a march to the Union Buildings demanding decent jobs for youth.
These struggles we shall wage side-by-side till we meet our demands. It is not the time to mourn on youth unemployment but time to mobilise.
Issued by PYA Secretariat
COSAS – Tebogo Magafane,
SASCO – Buthanani Thobela,
COSATU YW – Siyabonga Mkhize,
YCLSA – Tinyiko Ntini and
ANCYL – Joy Maimela.
For more information contact:
Mzwandile Thakhudi – YCLSA National Spokesperson
Mobile: 079 994 6391.
Sizophila Mkhize – ANCYL National Spokesperson
Mobile: 078 436 6831
Luvuyo Barnes – SASCO National Media Liaison Officer
Mobile: 079 393 7131
Douglas Ngobeni- COSAS National Spokesperson
Mobile: 068 5845344
Siyabonga Mkhize -COSATU YWF National Secretary
Mobile: 074 793 6738
South Africa
POPCRU on the crime statistics
Richard Mamabolo, POPCRU National Spokesperson, 3 June 2022
The Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) has noted the recently released quarterly crime statistics covering the period January to March 2022 by the South African Police Service (SAPS).
The fact that there has been rising crime statistics in almost all categories comes as no surprise, considering the environment within which the SAPS management, police officers and the stations within which they work in do not enable for maximum utilisation of all available resources in providing sufficient service delivery.
We have noted that in the period under review, the murder rate has increased by 22,2%, amounting to 6083 murders, with over 27 police officers murdered, while the murder of children went up by 37.2% and common robbery went up by 6.5%, amounting to 32 783 cases, and sexual offenses reported to police increased by by 13,7%, amounting to 13799 reported cases. All of these are reflective of an overall increase of 9,3% in crime.
While this is the case, the fact that sexual offenses reported to police has increased by 13.7% is indicative of the reality that more people are coming out to report, which should be seen as a positive move towards exposing perpetrators and ensuring such heinous crimes are no longer hidden behind closed doors.
We are further concerned about the consistent patterns of crime in certain areas, as with the continued rape cases demonstrating that Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape, Inanda in Kwa Zulu-Natal and Thohohandou in Limpopo that have been reflected upon, registering the highest number of rape cases. The three police stations registered an increase from 84 to 89, 69 to 98 and 63 to 67 from the previous to current financial year respectively.
Ideally, crime statistics are supposed to serve as a tool with which to provide our law enforcement agencies with data for use of determining budgetary formulations, planning and the allocation of resources and police operations. The fact that the current statistics demonstrate a general rise in crime can only be reflective of the levels of incapacity faced by the SAPS, which include the uneven allocation of resources, poor working conditions and the shortages of ammunition and training among others.
Such unabated patterns are but a reflection of the deep-rooted capacity challenges faced by our police officers across different communities, wherein despite being aware of the crime conditions, are limited by the availability of resources to make any real interventions.
It is always vital that when addressing the rising crime statistics, we take a broad approach that considers the broader socio-economic conditions faced by the populace, including the implications thereof which lead to the conditions our law enforcement officers have to contend with.
We are of the view that crime statistics should not be the sole responsibility of the Ministry of Police, but the collective responsibility of the entire criminal justice cluster with the SAPS accounting for the arrests made, the Judiciary accounting for the number convictions and prosecutions, while the Department of Correctional Services accounts for the number of incarcerations.
This, we believe, will assist in determining consolidated future budgets that should bring about a correlated approach within the CJC instead of the current continued situation wherein every department works blindly, and in isolation of one another.
Issued by POPCRU
International-Solidarity
Building social protection for garment workers
2 June, 2022
The Covid-19 pandemic left millions of garment workers around the world without jobs and pay, bringing to light the precarious work environment they have faced for decades. A change is needed in the sector, including an urgent need for social protection for garment workers.
On
31 May, IndustriALL and ILR School’s New Conversation Project hosted a webinar to launch the recent report, “Security for Apparel Workers: Alternative Models”. The report, commissioned to examine past efforts and possible models for advancing social protection
in the global apparel and footwear sector, outlines existing approaches that have attempted to provide apparel workers with some degree of income security, and use those to assemble the necessary elements of a way forward for the development of sustainable
systems of social protection.
Executive director of the ILR School’s New Conversation Project Jason Judd, says:
"Covid was a stress test for systems – private ones run by fashion brands and public ones built by national governments – to protect workers in the global apparel industry. Most were found wanting."
After addressing several other systems – including funds that were set up in the aftermath of a tragedy, like the Rana Plaza accident, as well as one responding to COVID-19 – the paper highlights that one match for the goals of a global social protection would be to set a model similar to the International Bargaining Forum. The Forum is the industry-wide framework established in 1999 for collective bargaining between the global seafarers’ union, the International Transport Workers Federation– now representing nearly 150,000 seafarers – and a consortium of European vessel owners and shipping management firms.
“Of all the agreements and mechanisms reviewed above, we see this as the strongest in that it is specific and binding, covers multiple countries and is global in scope, includes industry funding for independent enforcement and work welfare, and has a governance structure rooted in collective bargaining. All of these elements could figure in a global social protection agreement, beginning with its form: a transnational collective bargaining agreement between unions such as IndustriALL and its affiliates, buyers and suppliers.”
"The current supply chain model is built on cheap labour and avoiding responsibility; taking production to countries with no labour rights and little social protection. Without social protection, societies fall apart. Social protection is a public issue, but until that is a reality, we have to build a system with incentives to push governments and companies in the countries where they operate,"
says
IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie.
The report recommends:
- A global severance fund established with money provided as a result of an agreement between global unions and global brands.
- A global governing body for unions, suppliers and fashion brands with a small number of seats (voting or observing) reserved for national governments, a representative of an international financial institution, and NGOs which are active in the apparel supply chain sphere.
- National level bodies to monitor the process of establishing, improving national social security systems, educating workers about the fund and its purpose, and, potentially, a role in disbursing funds nationally.
- An “inspection function” that allows union participants across dozens of countries, supported by the global fund, to verify compliance with the terms of the agreement
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"Workers need a strong, independent voice"
2 June, 2022
When IndustriALL’s Executive Committee on 1 June gathered more than 200 participants online, international solidarity was on the agenda.
Opening the meeting, IndustriALL president Jörg Hoffman stressed that a further escalation of the war in Ukraine must be avoided and that as part of the international trade union movement, we have a responsibility.
"IndustriALL has taken a strong stand against the war and has set up a solidarity fund, visited Kyiv, workers in Europe has collected necessary items for their colleagues in Ukraine. The war affects us all as supply chains are breaking down, energy and food prices sky rocketing. Those who lived hand to mouth before the war are even harder hit. We must not allow people in the global South to pay the price for Putin's war.
"The war in Ukraine cannot allow us to close our eyes to other troubled spots in the world. War, violence, climate change that has followed on the pandemic – never has a strong commitment to freedom, peace, equal rights been more needed. We need a strong independent voice of the workers and we can provide that strong voice."
In the secretariat report, IndustriALL general secretary Atle Høie said that we must stand up for democracy and rights.
"The right to organize and collective bargaining are grounds for peace. But it is not all dire; in Brazil, Renault workers won increased wages after a 16-day strike; SINTTIA in Mexico won an important symbolic victory when they obtained the right to bargain collectively at a General Motors plant; garment workers in Haiti faced rubber bullets but did not back down and GOSTTRA won the minimum wage for its members; in Thailand a 13-month campaign led to legal severance finally being paid to garment workers who were illegally fired during the pandemic; and the tremendous victory by Finnish paper workers on strike for 112 days, fighting back against the employer who wanted to break the CBA."
IndustriALL affiliates from Ukraine reported on the situation on the ground, describing a very dangerous situation, giving the example from a mine where miners were caught underground, in the dark, due to a power cut. Schools and educational institutions have been destroyed beyond repair in the war. Hundreds of children have been injured or killed, people are raped, killed and tortured.
"But we continue to do what we can and we need your support."
Affiliates took the floor in support of people in Ukraine and the Executive Committee endorsed a statement condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine and calling on the aggression to stop immediately.
Following a meeting in May, IndustriALL’s Women's Committee reported on the discussions to the Executive Committee. Advancing gender equality in all IndustriALL sectors, empowering and promoting the participation of young women, how to use global framework agreements to advance gender equality, and ending the gender pay gap - there is lack of understanding of what it is and that it actually exists. Classification alone does not prevent gender pay gap.
Following up on the Congress resolution on youth, the meeting heard that throughout the year, young workers in each region will establish their priorities ahead of the road map to implement the resolution next year. Capacity building is needed and building a second layer of leadership should be a priority, supported by the Women’s Committee who has proposed a mentor programme to advance young leaders.
The Executive Committee was challenged to discuss the strategic direction of IndustriALL’s work on multinational companies. This included the scope and mandate of the working group on global framework agreements. There was agreement that the scope has to be extended to deal with all leverage points towards multinational companies, not only GFAs. The working group might have to split up into smaller action groups to deal with different challenging topics. To safeguard workers’ rights in the supply chain, there is a need for binding and enforceable global rules to confront global corporate power. The discussion is carried over to the next meeting of the Executive Committee in November, where the new working group will be finalized.
The meeting endorsed a global day of action against inequality on 7 October. From the proposal:
“Inequality is growing around the world despite increased productivity, and workers in many countries face a cost of living crisis. Workers need a fair share of the wealth they produce. Until we address the question of the unequal distribution of wealth, we will be unable to advance in other areas, including Just Transition.”
The Executive Committee also endorsed
- A campaign week on Just Transition, ahead of COP 27, which will be held in Egypt 8-20 November
- Proposed roadmap for the implementation of Congress resolution on sexism and misogyny
- Proposed steps to advancing gender equality in IndustriALL sectors
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UNI Global Union concerned over merger of Microsoft and Activision Blizzard, as video game workers are set to meet in Berlin
02.06.22
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Video game workers and union representatives from 20 countries will meet in Berlin later this month to discuss international efforts to organize and strengthen worker power in the growing digital entertainment sector, as opposition to the merger between Microsoft and Activision Blizzard intensifies.
“Video games workers are coming to Berlin to deliver a strong message to the titans of the sector: it’s time to fight for our rights—we are going union,” said Christy Hoffman, General Secretary of UNI Global Union. “Mergers such as the much-anticipated Microsoft-Activision Blizzard tie up could have a negative impact for thousands of workers in a sector where there is an increasing interest in forming unions and improving often appalling working conditions.”
UNI is also concerned that the potential merger could strengthen Microsoft’s ecosystem and consolidate the industry–leaving fewer employment alternatives and weakening workers’ collective power. For instance, the acquisition would give Microsoft the incentive and ability to leverage the Activision games to strengthen its own market position regarding gaming consoles (Xboxes), distribution channels (Microsoft Store) and other Microsoft services (for example, Windows), respectively. Since the company is a major hardware producer, platform provider and distributer, the potential merger unquestionably will provide the ability to foreclose any of the relevant markets, for example by displaying own titles more prominently within its distribution channels (e.g., the Microsoft Store).
An increase in market concentration could also increase the risk that employers align their conduct to keep wages and benefits low or require restrictive contractual conditions from workers (such as non-compete obligations, no-poach agreements, or excessive non-disclosure agreements, which all reduce worker mobility). In a concentrated market, workers will have severely restricted opportunities without the protections of a collective bargaining agreement. Game development is a specialized field where workers cannot easily switch to other technical roles. This will undermine workers’ rights, make unionizing harder, suppress wages and innovation, thus harming consumers.
These restrictions will come at a time when game worker organizing is rapidly expanding.
Quality assurance testers at Raven studios (a subsidiary of Activision Blizzard) just won a vote to form their union: the Game Workers Alliance (CWA.) The historic win marks the second video game union in the U.S. The first was Vodeo Workers United (CWA).
A drive to unionize at Activision Blizzard was largely launched because of the poor working conditions and “frat boy” culture. Secretary-treasurer of CWA, Sara Steffens said at the time, “They have repetitive stress injuries, eye strain, other occupational health issues. And then there has been a lot of sexual harassment and discrimination at this employer as well.”
In this troubling context, gaining worker power is vital in a sector that according to experts is the largest and most expansive entertainment industry. “To put that ubiquity into context, the global box office saw takings of around $21.4 billion last year,” one trade publication noted. “Gaming, on the other hand, was worth $173 billion in 2021, and $223 billion this year, per GlobalData.”
In Berlin, workers and union representatives will discuss their options to protect workers during this merger.
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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