Johannesburg – Cosatu has warned against what it deems to be an agenda against workers pushed by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration.
The federation’s president Zingisa Losi told a closed meeting of the ANC’s national executive committee lekgotla that the Treasury, headed by Finance Minister Tito Mboweni, was waging a war against collective bargaining.
“Cosatu and workers are deeply angry with what is a clear neo-liberal agenda being pushed in the state. The lekgotla papers speak of providing support to workers and affirming the ANC’s alliance with Cosatu, yet government led by Treasury is waging war against collective bargaining,” Losi said.
Have you read: Koko takes 72-year-old principal to the cleaners
“Despite lip service, the government has actively undermined collective bargaining.
Now our unions are forced to take government to court and report it to the ILO [International Labour Organisation], all to force it to respect the rights of workers to collective bargaining. “With this track record, how does the ANC expect to win workers’ votes in the local elections?” Losi asked.
This comes after a major fallout between government and public sector unions over the 2018 wage agreement that could have seen salary increases of 4.4% and 5% from April last year. Last month, the Labour Appeal Court in Johannesburg ruled that the wage agreement was unlawful and contradicted the constitution as it had become unaffordable to implement since public finances were battered by Covid-19.
The unions have since threatened to petition the Constitutional Court. Losi said many commitments to deal with the impact of Covid- 19 on workers in the discussion papers at the lekgotla were progressive but the problem was they were saying “little new” and were short on specifics, time frames, financial resources and specific actions.
Also read: Car crash involving Isibaya actress claimed two lives
She noted workers were doubtful the commitments would find space in the budget to be tabled next month by Mboweni.
Cosatu does not believe the ANC will hold the government accountable for not implementing the party’s progressive manifestos and resolutions.
Losi said workers were going to ask tough questions when canvassed to vote for the ANC at the forthcoming local elections.
“Workers will ask why is the government they elected allowing thousands of workers to lose their wages, pensions and jobs in our SOEs? Workers will ask what has the government done to stop corruption, arrest those who loot, confiscate their stolen assets and ensure that criminals are brought to trial?
Have you read: Kwaito artist Thebe Mogane a no-show after being paid R10k deposit for performance
“Comrades, we are being honest as workers love the ANC, they want the ANC to succeed, they want government to help them in the moment of need. But they have lost hope and faith that either will happen,” she said.
Follow @SundayWorldZA on Twitter and @sundayworldza on Instagram, or like our Facebook Page, Sunday World, by clicking here for the latest breaking news in South Africa. To Subscribe to Sunday World, click here.
Sunday World
