Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin, 26 May 2025
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY #Cosatu ordinary CEC session is underway this week #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
26 May 2025
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
-
COSATU has a vacancy of a Just Transition Project Support (Fixed Term Contract)
- South Africa
- COSATU will present its submission on the One Stop Border Post Bill to Parliament, Tuesday 27 May 2025
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Morocco: Sustained strike action turns into a foundational event, driving trade union renewal
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics
COSATU
has a vacancy of a Just Transition Project Support (Fixed Term Contract)
Khanyisile
Fakude, COSATU Administrative Secretary and Human Resources, 22 May 2025
The
Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) is inviting applications for the Just Transition Project Support position based in its Head Office, Braamfontein with possible international travel. The successful candidate will be responsible for ensuring the
effective implementation of COSATU’s Just Transition agenda both nationally and internationally.
The role involves project tracking, financial reporting, workshop coordination, database management, and support for climate change committee convenings. The incumbent will work closely with Just Transition leads and contribute to ensuring COSATU’s Just Transition objectives are met in alignment with global frameworks and national priorities.
Key
Responsibilities:
1.
Administrative and Project Support
•
Provide administrative support to the Just Transition team, ensuring smooth execution of tasks.
• Track project milestones, deliverables, and timelines, ensuring alignment with COSATU’s Just Transition objectives.
• Maintain comprehensive records, reports, and documentation related to Just Transition activities.
2. Financial Reporting and Budget Monitoring
•
Assist in financial reporting related to Just Transition projects, ensuring compliance with COSATU financial policies.
• Monitor budgets and expenditures for Just Transition initiatives.
•Support grant and funding applications by maintaining accurate financial records.
3. Workshop Coordination and Logistics
•
Organise and coordinate Just Transition workshops, meetings, and training sessions at national and international levels.
• Handle logistics, including venue booking, travel arrangements, and participant coordination.
• Prepare workshop materials, reports, and presentations.
• Database Management and Information Tracking
• Maintain and update a database of key stakeholders, partners, and climate change networks
•
Track
and record key developments in Just Transition policies and frameworks relevant to COSATU’s work.
4.
Climate Change Committee Support
•
Convene and support COSATU’s Climate Change Committee meetings.
• Prepare and distribute meeting agendas, minutes, and reports.
• Ensure follow-up on action items and decisions taken during committee meetings.
• Strategic Engagement and Advocacy Support
•
Assist in promoting COSATU’s Just Transition agenda nationally and internationally.
• Support Just Transition leads in engagements with stakeholders, including unions, government, civil society, and international bodies.
• Draft briefing notes, position papers, and communication materials related to Just Transition issues.
5. International Engagement and Travel
•
Represent COSATU in relevant national and international forums, workshops, and policy discussions.
• Provide logistical and administrative support for COSATU delegations attending international climate-related events.
Required Skills and Qualifications:
•
Bachelor’s degree in environmental studies, Social Sciences, Development Studies, or a related field.
• Clear understanding of COSATU, the structures of the Federation as well as the broader trade union movement
• Strong knowledge of Just Transition frameworks, UNFCCC processes, and climate change principles.
• At least 2 years of experience in project administration, coordination, or support roles within a trade union, NGO, or policy organisation.
• Experience in financial reporting and budget monitoring.
•
Excellent organisational and multitasking skills with the • ability to meet deadlines.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and database management tools.
• Ability to travel domestically and internationally as required.
•
Commitment to COSATU’s principles and Just Transition agenda.
• Experience working in labour movements, climate justice, or social development sectors.
• Familiarity with South African labour and environmental policies.
•
Experience in stakeholder engagement and workshop facilitation.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced environment.
All applications should be sent on or before the 30th May 2025 with a detailed CV and contactable references to:
The COSATU General Secretary
●
Email to: khany...@cosatu.org.za
Only short-listed candidates will be contacted.
COSATU will present its submission on the One Stop Border Post Bill to Parliament, Tuesday 27 May 2025
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 26 May 2025
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) will present its submission on the One Stop Border Post Bill to Parliament’s Portfolio Committee: Home Affairs from 09h00, on Tuesday 27 May 2025 (virtual platform).
Issued by COSATU
International-Solidarity
Morocco: Sustained strike action turns into a foundational event, driving trade union renewal
Trade union rights are human rights Union renewal and development, 26 May 2025
During the major mobilisations staged over a period of three months by the teaching profession in Morocco, the SNE-CDT education union actively listened to workers’ demands, organised grassroots consultations, and built a shared trade union position. A national trade union renewal plan was also launched, setting out specific aims such as increasing membership, setting up local union committees, and organising field visits.
Effective communication strategies
According to Younes Firachine, General Secretary of the SNE-CDT, “the success in terms of the length of the mobilisation – three months – lies in a combination of structural and human factors leading up to the strike action. We spent a long time preparing the ground. There was, of course, legitimacy to the action, because the strike wasn’t a knee-jerk reaction but a response to the deep-seated discontent felt throughout the country.”
The union leader underlined that clear communication and peaceful resistance were crucial. “We favoured non-violent actions, sit-ins, well-managed marches, peaceful demonstrations of all kinds. But, all that aside, it was the moral fibre of the teachers in the movement that was decisive,” he explained.
“We actively listened to the demands, organised grassroots consultations, and built a shared trade union position. We also, of course, played a strategic role with the rank-and-file members, the local and regional branches, to ensure the continuity of the strike,” he added.
Historic agreements
The three months of strike action ended with the signing of two historic agreements, marking a decisive step in teachers’ collective struggle. These agreements, dated 10 and 26 December 2023, led to pay rises upwards of 1,500 dirhams (150 euros) and a new unified status for teachers on fixed-term and permanent contracts.
Trade union renewal
The strike was also a moment of collective introspection for the SNE-CDT, highlighting internal weaknesses and the need to reinvent the union’s role. The union leader explained: “We realised that the union could no longer limit itself to reacting to crises; it had to become a player in social and educational transformation, as well as on the ethical front.”
A national union renewal plan was therefore launched in February 2024, setting out specific objectives such as increasing membership and creating local union committees.
This “foundational event”, according to Younes Firachine, brought together members from each of the country’s 12 provinces “to reformulate our common vision and our course of action. We set up dynamic local teams comprising women activists, young teachers, experienced activists, male and female, all of whom acted as catalysts in their regions.”
The union also organised regular field trips. The SNE-CDT representatives went to schools, including the most remote, to talk, listen to, and convince their colleagues of the benefits of trade unionism.
“We have also modernised our communication tools, using podcasts and videos and posting on social media to reach a wider audience,” Firachine added.
Promising results
The SNE-CDT’s efforts have paid off, with the union achieving a 50% increase in membership since the end of 2023. “For us, the 2023 strike was a turning point, a moment of truth, but it was not an end in itself. The important thing is what we have built: a revitalised union that is more representative, more responsive, more in touch with the reality on the ground and, of course, resolutely focused on the future of public education. We built on the momentum generated by the three months of strike action. We were ready for union renewal, with concrete action plans, well-planned, well-thought-out, and quantified objectives. And we’ve achieved results that we would never have dreamed of”, Firachine concluded.
______________________________
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