Taking COSATU Today Forward Special Bulletin, 24 July 2026 #GreenIndustrialisation
Norman Mampane
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COSATU TODAY COSATU Call Center Contacts: 010 002 2590 #Cosatu Green Industrialisation National Policy Workshop is 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 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
24 July 2026
“Build Working Class Unity for Economic Liberation towards Socialism”
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Contents
- Workers Parliament: Back to Basics!
- COSATU Mpumalanga post picket statement
- NUM concludes landmark five-year wage agreement at Gold Fields South Deep Mine
- South Africa
- COSATU notes the resignation of the PIC Board
- International-Workers’ Solidarity!
- Moroccan unions want strong due diligence and trade rules
Workers’ Parliament-Back2Basics #ClassWar
COSATU Mpumalanga post picket statement
Thabo Mokoena, COSATU Mpumalanga Provincial Secretary, 24 July 2026
Cost of Living, Water, Electricity, Dignity and Social Justice Campaign
COSATU and Allied Formations Stage Successful Picket, Hand Over Memorandum of Demands to Gert Sibande District Municipality.
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) in Mpumalanga, together with its allies in the Cost of Living, Water, Electricity, Dignity and Social Justice Campaign, today staged a resounding and well-attended picket at the Gert Sibande District Municipality, culminating in the handover of a Joint Memorandum of Demands.
Workers, the unemployed, pensioners, youth, women, civic organisations, faith-based organisations and progressive formations turned out in their numbers, sending an unmistakable message that the working class and the poor of the Gert Sibande District can no longer carry the burden of the deepening cost of living crisis, the water and electricity crisis, and the deterioration of municipal services.
The picket forms part of COSATU's National Action on the Cost-of-Living Campaign, directed by the COSATU Central Executive Committee, mobilising workers and communities across the country against the unbearable rise in the cost of food, fuel, electricity and basic services.
Organisations that formed part of the picket
This united front brought together:
- Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU)
- South African Communist Party (SACP) – Gert Sibande District
- South African National Civic Organisation (SANCO)
- National Association of School Governing Bodies (NASGB)
- Gert Sibande Pastors Fraternal
- Community organisations, civil society organisations and progressive formations of the Gert Sibande District
Handover of the Memorandum
The Joint Memorandum of Demands was received on behalf of the Municipality by the Executive Mayor of the Gert Sibande District Municipality, Honourable Councillor Mngomezulu, who committed to responding to the demands within 14 days, as requested by the Campaign.
Issues raised in the Memorandum
The Memorandum placed the following concerns before the Executive Mayor and the Municipality:
- The unrelenting rise in the cost of living, including food, fuel, electricity, transport and basic services, which workers and the poor can no longer afford.
- Persistent water interruptions, ageing infrastructure, water losses and inadequate maintenance.
- Continuous load shedding and load reduction affecting households, schools, workplaces, businesses and public institutions.
- Escalating electricity tariffs and municipal charges that compound the cost of living crisis.
- Corruption, maladministration, wasteful expenditure and weak accountability that undermine public confidence and divert resources from service delivery.
- Inadequate investment in municipal infrastructure.
- Weak public participation in municipal planning and oversight.
- The increasing burden placed on workers, the unemployed and poor households through rising service costs and stagnant incomes.
- Exclusion of qualifying households from Free Basic Water and Free Basic Electricity due to inadequate awareness, administrative barriers and weak indigent registration systems.
Our demands
The Campaign called on the Executive Mayor and the Municipality to, among others:
- Take urgent and visible steps to ease the cost-of-living burden on workers and the poor.
- Restore reliable and uninterrupted water supply throughout the district.
- Upgrade and maintain ageing water and electricity infrastructure.
- Work with Eskom to end load shedding and load reduction across the Gert Sibande District.
- Protect schools, clinics, hospitals and other essential public institutions from water and electricity interruptions.
- Fully implement the Free Basic Water and Free Basic Electricity policies and simplify indigent registration.
- Publish transparent reports on infrastructure maintenance, municipal finances and service delivery performance.
- Strengthen anti-corruption measures and act decisively against maladministration and wasteful expenditure.
- Establish a permanent stakeholder forum comprising the Municipality, COSATU, SACP, SANCO, NASGB, the Gert Sibande Pastors Fraternal and other civil society organisations to monitor implementation.
COSATU Mpumalanga's message
COSATU Mpumalanga commends the discipline, unity and overwhelming turnout of workers and communities who joined the picket. This action demonstrates the resolve of the working class and the poor of the Gert Sibande District to defend their constitutional rights to clean water, reliable electricity, quality education, healthcare and affordable basic services.
We welcome the commitment by Executive Mayor Councillor Mngomezulu to respond within 14 days and will hold the Municipality to this undertaking. We reiterate our call for a follow-up engagement to assess progress on the implementation of these demands, and we remain ready for constructive dialogue in pursuit of affordable living, reliable public services and accountable governance.
We will not relent until every household in the Gert Sibande District enjoys dignity, justice and access to the basic services they are constitutionally entitled to.
Forward to Affordable Living for Workers and the Poor!
Forward to Reliable Water!
Forward to an End to Load Shedding and Load Reduction!
Forward to Affordable Electricity!
Forward to Decent Public Services!
Forward to People's Power, Dignity and Social Justice!
Issued by COSATU Mpumalanga
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NUM concludes landmark five-year wage agreement at Gold Fields South Deep Mine
Senzo Mncwango, NUM PWV Regional Secretary, 24 July 2026
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), the majority union at Gold Fields South Deep Mine, has successfully concluded a five-year wage agreement on behalf of its members and all mine employees. The multi-year agreement, negotiated in collaboration with UASA, is effective from 1 March 2026 to 28 February 2031. It covers employees in Categories 4 to 8, as well as Miners, Artisans, and Officials.
Key Salary Adjustments:
• Year 1: ◦ Categories 4–8: Minimum entry-level basic salary increases to R18,663/month (underground) and R16,233/month (surface). Remaining employees in this category receive a 10% increase.
◦ Miners, Artisans & Officials: 6.2% increase.
• Year 2:
◦ Categories 4–8: Entry-level basic salary rises to R20,006/ month (underground) and R17,401/month (surface), with a 7.2% increase for remaining staff.
◦ Miners, Artisans & Officials: 6% increase.
• Year 3:
◦ Categories 4–8: Entry-level basic salary increases to R21,426/ month (underground) and R18,637/month (surface), with a 7.1% increase for other staff.
◦ Miners, Artisans & Officials: 6% increase.
• Year 4:
◦ Categories 4–8: Entry-level basic salary increases to R22,927/ month (underground) and R19,942/month (surface), with a 7.0% increase for remaining staff.
◦ Miners, Artisans & Officials: 6% increase.
• Year 5:
◦ Categories 4–8: Entry-level basic salary rises to R24,532/ month (underground) and R21,338/month (surface), with a 7.0% increase for remaining staff.
◦ Miners, Artisans & Officials: 6% increase.
Additional Benefits & One-Off Cash Incentive Adjustments will also be applied to the Housing Allowance, Medical Incapacity Benefit, and Funeral Benefit. In recognition of the timely conclusion of negotiations, Gold Fields has approved a discretionary, one-off cash incentive:
• R50,000 for permanent and fixed-term employees with at least 12 months of continuous service.
• R10,000 for non-permanent employees on active/residual learnerships, experiential learning, and related programs with at least six months of continuous service. The NUM commends its members for the discipline and maturity displayed throughout the negotiation process.
The union was fully mandated by its members to sign this agreement during a mass meeting held on Wednesday, 22 July 2026.
This historic agreement not only secures strong, above-inflation salary increases for workers but also provides long-term job security and stability for the workforce.
South Africa #ClassSolidarity
COSATU notes the resignation of the PIC Board
Matthew Parks, COSATU Parliamentary Coordinator, 24 July 2026
The Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) notes of the resignation of the Public Investment Corporation (PIC)’s Board, including the Chairperson, Deputy Minister for Finance, Dr. David Masondo, as well as labour’s representatives. We appreciate their diligent efforts over the past two terms to ensure that workers and pensioners’ hard-earned monies are safe at all times.
It is important for all parties to understand that the monies invested by the PIC, namely the Government Employees’ Pension, Unemployment Insurance and Compensation of Occupational Injuries and Diseases Funds; belong to workers and pensioners, not PIC officials, politicians, tenderpreneurs or their families. We commend the PIC’s performance that saw these assets doubling over the past six years from R1.8 trillion to R3.6 trillion, far outstripping other funds and entities.
We remain deeply concerned, notwithstanding the performance of the outgoing Board, that serious instances of corruption, wastage and state capture remain entrenched within the PIC. We have been extremely disappointed by whistleblower reports alleging continued interference by politicians in PIC appointments and investments.
COSATU welcomed the referral by the outgoing Board of the Acapulco investment into Lanseria Airport to the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) for further investigation. It is critical that this and other investigations into governance and corruption are not blocked or swept under the carpet by the Board’s resignation.
The Federation urges the President, H.E. Cyril Ramaphosa, to task the SIU with the support of the Auditor-General and the Hawks to investigate all PIC investments, listed and unlisted, and to hold any persons, no matter who they may be, fully accountable under the law for any instances of corruption.
It is critical that Cabinet move with speed to appoint a new PIC Board. It must consist of persons of integrity and capacity to provide the necessary stability and leadership to the PIC.
We expect Cabinet to comply with the PIC Act’s requirements that three representatives to the PIC Board be selected by workers through the Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council. These are key to assuring workers and pensioners that their hard-earned monies are safe.
COSATU insists and will ensure that any proposed amendments to the PIC Act, retain and protect the progressive gains workers secured in the 2019 PIC Amendment Act, namely worker selected representatives and clear criteria for Board appointments, checks and balances upon the executive authority, progressive investment mandates and the required public disclosure of all listed and unlisted investments.
The Federation will continue to engage with the Presidency, Treasury and Parliament to ensure that workers and pensioners’ interests are respected at all times and that all instances of state capture and corruption at the PIC are dealt with.
Issued by COSATU
Internationalism-Solidarity
Moroccan unions want strong due diligence and trade rules
24 July, 2026
Moroccan trade unions are calling for stronger human rights due diligence and fair, rules-based trade, as international investment pours into the country's
manufacturing sector.
These demands were raised during a visit by an IndustriALL delegation, led by assistant general secretary Kemal Özkan and MENA regional secretary Ahmed Kamel, to Moroccan affiliates from the Union Marocaine du Travail (UMT) and the Confédération Démocratique
du Travail (CDT). The visit took place from 14 to 17 July 2026.
Due diligence is an important tool given international investment
Morocco is an emerging destination for international investment, supported by a range of incentive policies, particularly in manufacturing. With its strategic location close to Europe and its modernized infrastructure, the country attracts significant interest
from international investors. Other advantages also make it attractive. Leading multinational companies operating in Morocco include automotive firms such as Renault and Stellantis. Aerospace companies such as Safran and Airbus are also present.
On 15 July 2026, the delegation visited UMT general secretary Miloudi Al-Mukharek to discuss the current situation in the country. During the visit, they also presented the main lines of IndustriALL’s Action Plan, adopted at its 4th Congress.
Miloudi Al-Mukharek affirmed UMT’s satisfaction in working with IndustriALL across numerous fronts. These efforts generally converge in the interest of workers in vital sectors such as automotive, aerospace, textile and chemicals. This work is carried out through
training, mentoring and the exchange of advice on issues faced by workers at certain companies.
Emphasizing the importance of organizing, mobilizing and building a strong workforce, Kemal Özkan stressed the need to care for the workers, both men and women. These workers will be involved in preparations for the upcoming World Cup to be held in Morocco.
He noted the need to respect their rights and working conditions.
The delegation also met with affiliates from the metal, mining, textile, chemicals and oil and gas sectors. They met to discuss how to use human rights due diligence in core union work, particularly for organizing and collective bargaining.
Participants discussed different aspects of due diligence, noting the difficulty of implementing it in a country that continues to face a crisis of trade union freedoms. At the conclusion of the meeting, participants expressed their gratitude to IndustriALL
for its leading role in promoting the tool among affiliates.
International trade is needed, but it must be fair
Morocco maintains close trade partnerships with countries including Spain, France, the UK and Germany. Trade figures show a negative trade balance, particularly with Spain, China and the USA. However, international trade remains an important factor for Morocco’s
economic development.
On 16 July 2026, the delegation visited CDT general secretary Khaled El-Alami. The visit provided an opportunity to exchange views on the rapid transformations taking place in the world of work. They discussed the impact of economic and geopolitical crises
on workers. In addition, discussions explored ways to strengthen international trade union solidarity in the face of challenges to social rights and trade union freedoms. The talks also focused on how to defend the right to decent work and social justice.
Khaled El-Alami emphasized the importance of the strategic partnership between CDT and IndustriALL. He also highlighted the large-scale national protest marches organized by CDT in recent weeks.
IndustriALL affiliates across various sectors also participated in a joint workshop on international trade. In this workshop, they discussed the impact of transformations in global trade and production chains on workers’ conditions. Affiliates explored ways
to strengthen union capabilities and improve coordination among themselves.
Participants emphasized the importance of strengthening cooperation between IndustriALL and CDT affiliates, exchanging experience and expertise and building knowledge of collective bargaining negotiations. This work aims to defend workers’ rights, confront
current economic and social challenges and strengthen the presence of the trade union movement in international forums.
IndustriALL’s Action Plan in place
IndustriALL’s Moroccan affiliates received feedback from IndustriALL’s last congress. They discussed how to implement it amid transformations taking place in the world of work, including the digital and energy revolutions and climate change. These changes are
having a clear impact on all workers. Particular attention was given to strengthening collective bargaining, achieving a just transition, protecting women’s rights and establishing sustainable industrial policies.
Kemal Özkan said:
“Morocco is an important country for IndustriALL Global Union. We follow labour relations in the country, and there is a declining trend in social dialogue, industrial relations and fundamental workers’ rights. There is a strong need to institutionalize social
dialogue, as there are so many pressing problems for workers and unions in the country. We need to keep organizing, mobilizing and building a strong movement in Morocco, and IndustriALL will continue to give its full support and solidarity.”
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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