Taking COSATU Today Forward, 23 July 2026 #GreenIndustrialisation
Norman Mampane
|
COSATU TODAY COSATU Call Center Contacts: 010 002 2590 #COSATU Green Industrialisation National Policy Workshop gets underway in Johannesburg…#GreenRevolution #GreenJobs #NationaActionAgainstCostOfLiving Campaign continues… #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
23 July 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!
- Employment and Labour hosts employment equity workshops/roadshows
- South Africa
- Update on migration issues by Department of International Relations and Cooperation, SA
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Filipino Community Care Workers Appeal Directly to President Ahead of State Address
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics #ClassWar
Employment
and Labour hosts employment equity workshops/roadshows
21
Jul 2026
Key labour relations amendments and employment laws amendments on target for promulgation in 2028
The key and broad Labour Relations Amendment Bill and Employment Laws Amendment Bills that were unveiled for public comment in the beginning of the year can be expected to be promulgated in 2028, so said Department of Employment and Labour Director: Collective
Bargaining, Stephen Rathai.
He said following the public comments eliciting process that closed in February the Department was engaged in the refinement of inputs. He said depending on the scale and extent of inputs the bills could still be resent back to Nedlac, the tripartite negotiating
organisation for finalisation.
Rathai is expecting the bills to be sent to Nedlac after July 2026. He was speaking during the start of employment equity (EE) workshops/roadshows that started today (21 July 2026) in Kimberley, Northern Cape at Horseshoe Inn. He was presenting on the on labour
law amendments – and their bearing on equity in the labour market.
The 2026 workshops will focus on:
Presentation on 2025 Provincial EE status (26th CEE Annual Report) and presentation on the Draft Amended Code of Good Practice on the preparation, implementation and monitoring of the EE Plan;
Presentation on practical demonstration of how to utilise the EE System online facilities to capture EE Reports and request EE Certificate of Compliance;
Presentation on sharing of all types of unfair discrimination cases by the CCMA; and
Presentation on labour law amendments – Labour Relations Act (LRA), Basic Conditions of Employment Act (BCEA), Employment Equity Act (EEA), National Minimum Wage Act (NMWA)
This year’s EE workshops/roadshows are held under the theme: “Bridging the Equity Gap Through Diversity & Inclusion”.
The Nedlac Labour Law Reform negotiation process took three years to complete. The reform process involved amending the Labour Relations Act, Basic Conditions of Employment Act, National Minimum Wage Act, and Employment Equity Act.
Rathai said once the consolidation of comments is finalised the bills will be sent back to Nedlac for finalisation before these are sent to State Law Advisers for assessment. He said once the bills have been subjected to Constitutional tests these will be sent
to the two houses of Parliament and the legislatures may also want to conduct their own public engagements.
Meanwhile, the EE national workshops will end in September 2026.
The EE workshops are targeted at Employers or Heads of organisations, employees and trade unions, Assigned Senior EE Managers, Consultative EE forum members, Human Resource Managers and Practitioners, Academics, Civil society, and interested stakeholders.
NB: All the workshops will be held from 09:00 to 16:00 and members of the media are invited.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Teboho Thejane
Departmental Spokesperson
Cell: 082 697 0694
E-mail: teboho....@labour.gov.za
Issued by Department of Employment and Labour
South Africa #ClassSolidarity
Update
on migration issues by Department of International Relations and Cooperation, SA
23 July 2026
DIRCO
reaffirms commitment to Pan-African solidarity, rule of law, and continental dialogue on migration following ECOWAS communiqué
The Ministry of International Relations and Cooperation notes the final communiqué issued following the 69th Ordinary Session of the ECOWAS Authority of Heads of State and Government.
South Africa views ECOWAS as a vital pillar of continental integration. In the spirit of Pan-African solidarity, South Africa remains deeply committed to open, constructive, and action-oriented dialogue with ECOWAS Member States on matters of mutual concern,
most notably regional stability and migration management.
South Africa reiterates, in the strongest terms, its unyielding stance against all forms of social prejudice. We categorically reject xenophobia, racism, homophobia, and intolerance and discrimination in all their manifestations.
Upholding the dignity of every person within our borders is both a constitutional imperative and a moral duty. South Africa remains steadfast in maintaining the rule of law and ensuring that those who perpetrate violence or unlawful acts are held fully accountable
under our judicial system.
While South Africa continues to proactively resolve specific bilateral matters with West African partners, such as Ghana and Nigeria, our most high-volume migration dynamics are naturally concentrated within our immediate region, the Southern African Development
Community (SADC).
Minister Lamola, welcomes the opportunity to engage on migration at the highest level of the African Union (Heads of State Summit) to ensure that migration across the continent becomes a choice rather than a necessity. “Establishing a dedicated agenda item
at the African Union to address the primary push-and-pull factors and root causes of irregular migration, focusing squarely on good governance, democracy, and economic stability, will enable a pragmatic, comprehensive approach to continental migration challenges.”
Says Minister Lamola
Finally, regarding the opportunistic petition submitted to the International Criminal Court by two Ghanaian civilians, South Africa notes that this filing fails to satisfy the statutory legal triggers and jurisdictional requirements necessary for action by
the Court. Furthermore, under the foundational principle of complementarity, South Africa maintains full confidence in its domestic legal framework. Crucially, legislation such as the Prevention and Combating of Hate Crimes and Hate Speech Act directly gives
effect to the Republic’s obligations under the Constitution and international human rights instruments concerning racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia, and related intolerance. This legal framework specifically provides for distinct offences as hate crimes
and hate speech, ensuring the prosecution of any persons who commit such offences.
ISSUED BY THE MINISTRY OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS AND COOPERATION
Internationalism-Solidarity
Filipino Community Care Workers Appeal Directly to President Ahead of State Address
22 July 2026
Leaders representing the Philippines’ 277,000 community health workers, known locally as barangay health workers (BHWs), visited the Malacañang Presidential Palace on Tuesday, 21 July. They hand-delivered a joint appeal to President Ferdinand Marcos
Jr., pleading for his administration to prioritize the long-delayed Magna Carta of Barangay Health Workers ahead of his upcoming State of the Nation Address (SONA).
The delegation brought together the UNI Global Union – Philippine Liaison Council (UNI-PLC) and its affiliate, the National Confederation of Barangay Health Workers of the Philippines (NCBHWP), whose top leadership and 18 regional presidents signed the joint
appeal.
The coalition is respectfully asking the President to reinstate the Magna Carta of Barangay Health Workers as a top priority measure under the Legislative-Executive Development Advisory Council (LEDAC), certify the bill as urgent, and reaffirm his public commitment
to its passage during his national address on 27 July.
Community health workers serve as the primary frontline providers of public health programs across every village, or barangay, in the Philippines. From delivering basic maternal care and administering local health programs to anchoring the nation’s emergency
response during the COVID-19 pandemic, these workers form the essential backbone of the national healthcare system.
Yet, despite their indispensable role, BHWs continue to operate under severe strain. They lack standard compensation, standard functional provisions and basic social protections, leaving them among the most vulnerable members of the healthcare workforce.
“In 2023, the President gave renewed hope to hundreds of thousands of BHWs when he publicly committed to supporting our Magna Carta,” said Khonan Dark T. Cerial, President of the National Confederation of Barangay Health Workers of the Philippines. “Today,
BHWs are humbly appealing to the President to fulfill his promise. For over four decades, across multiple administrations, we have been repeatedly promised a law that ensures just recognition, adequate benefits and social protection. Many of our colleagues
have already retired or passed away without ever seeing those protections. We are praying that President Marcos Jr. will be the leader who finally brings this 40-year struggle to a close.“
The appeal to the Office of the President is framed not as a protest, but as a sincere plea for labour justice and fundamental human dignity.
“Our community health workers are the literal backbone of the primary healthcare system in every single village, yet they remain the most vulnerable and under-protected,” said Roland De La Cruz, President of UNI-PLC. “Securing a legislated Magna Carta is about
basic human dignity and labour justice. We respectfully appeal to the administration to certify this bill as an urgent measure. Fulfilling this commitment will not only honour the dedication of our 277,000 BHWs but will leave a permanent legacy of justice
for the country’s grassroots health workforce.”
“The international labour movement stands in unwavering solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of community care workers in the Philippines,” said Rajendra Acharya, Regional Secretary of UNI Asia & Pacific. “These workers hold together the very foundation
of public health in every single village in the Philippines, and their four-decade wait for legal protections must end. President Marcos Jr. has a historic opportunity to demonstrate leadership by certifying the Magna Carta as urgent and delivering the dignity,
recognition and social protections these essential workers have long deserved.”
Following the official submission at the Malacañang Palace, worker representatives expressed deep optimism that the Chief Executive will heed their call during his national address. Both UNI-PLC and NCBHWP reiterated their readiness to partner with the Office
of the President to transform this decades-long legislative effort into reality.
______________________________
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