Today's Labour News

TOP STORY – SABC RETRENCHMENTS

After putting retrenchment notices on hold for seven days, SABC board likely to make final decision on job cuts this week

BL Premium reports that the board of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is set to make a final decision later this week on its retrenchment plans.  After an emergency meeting on Thursday, the board said the issuing of retrenchment notices would be put on hold for a period of seven days to allow for further consultations and to explore further options to ensure the sustainability of the organisation.  “The SABC is committed to meaningfully engaging with all its stakeholders as it continues to make the corporation financially sustainable to fulfil its public mandate,” the public broadcaster said.  But the corporation's unions were not impressed.  The Communications Workers Union (CWU) picketed outside the broadcaster’s headquarters in Auckland Park on Friday.  Among its demands were that management should immediately withdraw all dismissal letters; retrenchments be abandoned; the board be dissolved; an administrator be appointed to run the broadcaster; and a comprehensive skills audit be done.  The CWU’s Aubrey Tshabalala said the SABC executives could never be trusted and the announcement that the retrenchment exercise would be halted for seven days “is a PR exercise”.  He said if all the demands were not met, workers would “shut down the SABC”.  SABC CEO Madoda Mxakwe said the issues raised would be submitted to the board and it was expected that a response would be provided next week.  Communications minister Stella Ndabeni-Abrahams, who has blocked previous retrenchment attempts at the SABC, entered the fray last week, calling on the broadcaster to consider other alternatives.  The ANC also opposed the cuts.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bekezela Phakathi at BusinessLive (paywall access only). Read too, SABC board suspends retrenchments amid pressure from unions and ANC, at BusinessLive

CWU to meet with SABC on Monday to discuss alternatives to staff lay-offs

News24 reports that the Communication Workers Union (CWU) is set to meet with representatives of the SA Broadcasting Corporation on (SABC) on Monday, the union advised in a statement on Sunday.  SABC staff resorted to industrial strike action on Friday to try and prevent the SABC from going ahead with the proposed retrenchments of more than 400 employees.  According to the CWU, it received a letter of invitation from the SABC requesting to urgently meet with the union to discuss alternatives to retrenchments at the state-owned broadcaster.  "We know very well that it is not over and it may be far before it's over, however, we are happy that our action can be coined as a successful protest.  We are still calling on workers of SABC; our members, non-union members, contractors, freelancers and permanent workers to embark on the industrial action until our demands are met," the union indicated in its latest statement.  CWU general secretary Aubrey Tshabalala commented that the SABC's invitation to the union to attend an urgent meeting was a positive sign for workers.  In his view, the SABC would eventually be forced to back off "because we are ready to roll up our sleeves and step on to the battlefield should we not come to an agreement by Wednesday".

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Carin Smith at News24

IFP calls for urgent debate in Parliament on planned SABC job cuts

EWN reports that with employees of the SA Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) demanding an end to planned retrenchments, the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) on Saturday said that it had written to National Assembly Speaker Thandi Modise requesting her to consider allowing an urgent debate to discuss the crisis.  The public broadcaster wants to retrench about 400 staffers, but it temporarily suspended the move last week after widespread backlash.  SABC employees protested against the planned job cuts on Friday with hundreds of staffers taking part in a nationwide demonstration led by the Communication Workers Union (CWU).  In a statement, IFP MP Narend Singh commented:  “It is for exactly this reason that - earlier this week - the IFP called for an independent consultation firm to be appointed at the SABC, in order for this body to provide neutral, fair, credible, and independent expertise to resolve the impasse.”  He added:  “As this situation appears to be spiralling out of control, and with the SABC board appearing to be at odds with itself, we feel that this matter requires urgent intervention.  Accordingly, we have requested that this matter be tabled in the National Assembly for an urgent debate.”  The SABC advised that it has put contingency measures in place in case workers followed through on their threats to down tools.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Edwin Ntshidi at EWN

SABC’s ‘fat cat’ managers and supervisors far outnumber ‘general’ workers

Saturday Citizen reports that the SA Broadcasting Corporation’s (SABC’s) managers and supervisors far outnumber “general” workers and that is one of the reasons that the average salary at the public broadcaster is almost R800,000 a year.  The corporation’s 2020 annual report reveals that its wage bill was R2.357 billion, which went on a total staff complement of 2,979 people.  This meant that the average cost-to-company of each employee was R791,000 a year, or R66,000 a month.  At 2,550, top management and senior management who form the executive, together with middle and junior managements and supervisors, constituted 85% of the SABC’s total workforce of 2,979.  By contrast, ‘general employees’ comprised just 15%, or 429.  With so many managers running the corporation, the SABC must have been one of the most intensively managed organisations in the country last year because there was an average of six managers for every employee.  But middle managers, junior managers and supervisors rejected any suggestion that they earned huge salaries as indicated in the annual report.  Those were mainly national and regional editors and executive producers who did not regard themselves as part of the senior management but supervisors, who were also affected by pending retrenchments.  “It is incorrect to lump up all salaries together and taking the average because that does not reflect the true picture of the situation,” argued one employee.  They argued that the highest amount in respect of personnel expenditure went to the top management and board members.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Eric Naki on page 5 of Saturday Citizen of 21 November 2020

UIF

ANC suggests tapping UIF surpluses for Eskom and other developmental causes

BL Premium reports that the ANC has outlined what it believes should form the basis of a social pact, which would include using the surpluses of the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) to support Eskom and other developmental causes.  On Friday, the party released its discussion documents that will lay the basis for talks at its national general council, which is to be held in 2021.  In its paper on the economy, the ANC suggests what contribution each social partner, namely the government, business and labour, could make to help grow the economy.  Among these would be agreement by business and labour “that social security funds could be tapped responsibly to address social and economic needs, in particular to deal with Eskom, promote small business, provide industrial financing, upgrade basic education in poor communities and increase incomes for the working poor.”  The proposal is likely to be very controversial.  The UIF still has R114bn in reserves after having paid out over R52bn to beneficiaries of the Covid-19 Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (Ters).  For several years, contributions to the fund — a statutory requirement for all employees in the formal economy — have far outstripped benefits paid out, enabling the accumulation of large reserves, most of which are invested on its behalf by the Public Investment Corporation.  In its discussion paper, the ANC is critical of the fact that most of the UIF’s reserves are used to fund JSE-listed companies through investments.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Carol Paton by BusinessLive (paywall access only)

OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH & SAFETY

Legal victory for domestic workers means they can at last claim for workplace injuries and diseases

The Citizen reports that a Mpumalanga woman’s eight-year battle for justice after her domestic worker mother died on duty in 2012 finally came to a close last week when the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) ruled that she and others like her were entitled to claim from the Compensation Fund (CF).  Last year, the High Court in Pretoria found the Compensation of Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act unconstitutional and invalid because it excluded domestic workers and their dependants from being able to claim from the CF for work-related injuries, illnesses or deaths.  On Thursday, the ConCourt not only confirmed that finding, it also confirmed a finding that the order of invalidity should be retrospective to 27 April 1994.  Acting Justice Margaret Victor said, in handing down the apex court’s majority judgment, that domestic workers were “unsung heroines”.  The judgment came on the back of a case brought by Sylvia Mahlangu following the death of her mother, Maria.  Mahlangu’s body was found floating in her employer’s swimming pool in 2012.  It later emerged that Mahlangu, partially blind and unable to swim, had lost her footing while cleaning windows, fell into the pool and drowned.  Sylvia had been entirely dependent on her mother.  But when she approached the department of labour, she was told she could not claim from the CF because domestic workers were not recognised as employees in terms of the Act, prompting her to turn to the courts.  CF commissioner Vuyo Mafata said on Thursday his office supported the inclusion of domestic workers as employees covered by the Act and that the amendment to facilitate this was currently before parliament.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Bernadette Wicks at The Citizen. Read too, ConCourt rules in favour of compensation for domestic workers, at Cape Times

Other internet posting(s) in this news category

• UDM deputy chairperson Mncedisi Filtane dies after contracting Covid-19, at EWN

MINING LABOUR

Mining industry responded well to new Covid-19 directives

Mining Weekly reports that legal firm Webber Wentzel’s annual Mining Roundup seminar heard on Thursday that the mining industry in SA responded well to the new directives to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and to ensure employee health.  The firm’s occupational health and safety specialist partner Kate Collier said:  "The mining industry proved adaptable and willing to change its practices to ensure the safety and productivity of employees.  Mines included key role players in their planning, as well as identifying where the roles of employees and leaders had changed and changing their roles as the legal regulations developed or to serve their risk mitigation strategies developed internally."  The role of occupation medical practitioners (OMPs) also changed as the Covid-19 regulations developed because their role included not only employee health but also public health aspects.  Labour law specialist partner Lizle Louw said:  "The key themes we identified include changes to business risk management and communicating with employees on a daily basis, as well as these changes moving outside the scope of purely health regulations to identify what boards and management teams must do to keep operations safe and productive.  The role of the OMP has become increasingly important, specifically in relation to vulnerable employees.”  Louw went on to advise:  "We have seen mines take all measures to avoid termination, including annual sick leave, reskilling options and mutual separation options.  If termination is necessary, incapacity, as defined in labour law, should be relied upon because there was no misconduct by the employee, nor is it a retrenchment in terms of operational requirements.”

Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Mining Weekly

Other general posting(s) relating to mining

• Mining gang of zama zamas digs for gold in the streets of Carletonville, at Independent News
• Wake-up call for SA’s coal-dependent energy sector, at Mail & Guardian (paywall access only)

BUSINESS RESCUE / RESTRUCTURING

Numsa in labour court bid to get Comair retrenchments scrapped

Moneyweb reports that the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) has accused Comair of colluding with another union, Solidarity, to circumvent the airline’s ongoing retrenchment process.  It wants the retrenchment notices served to employees in October to be scrapped and new notices to be issued in line with the requirements of the Labour Relations Act.  Should its application be granted, it could put a spanner in the works in the implementation of the airline’s business rescue plan, which requires that a collective agreement between the airline and unions be adopted to allow for the retrenchment of 400 employees.  Comair, which operates Kulula.com and British Airways locally, had its rescue plan adopted by creditors in September and foresees that the airline will resume operations in December.  Numsa argued at the Labour Court on Wednesday that prior to the adoption of the rescue plan, Comair management coerced some Numsa members into resigning from the union and joining Solidarity in a bid to ensure that the latter became the majority union at the airline.  But, Solidarity’s Derek Mans denied the claim and said the collective agreements were signed “in the best interests of [their] members”.  Advocate Andrew Redding for Solidarity told the court that as the minority union at Comair, Numsa would have to “suck it up” and be bound by the decisions taken by the majority union.  “Comair is on its knees and … the majority of the employees have agreed to give up their rights and have acknowledged that there must be a reorganisation of the business so that it has 400 less jobs,” Redding told the court.  Judgment in the matter was reserved.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thando Maeko at Moneyweb

JOB CREATION / YOUTH EMPLOYMENT

Gauteng finance MEC unveils medium-term budget, with additional R1.3bn for job creation

The Citizen reports that the 2020 medium-term budget policy statement for Gauteng did not set off any fireworks last week, with education getting the biggest part of the budget.  But, finance MEC Nomantu Nkomo-Ralehoko did set aside an additional R1.3 billion for job creation, particularly for the youth.  She allocated R1.1 billion to the education sector to hire education assistants and preserve posts in Quintile 4 and 5 public schools and low-income private schools.  Health received an additional R47.4 million to appoint enrolled and assistant or auxiliary nurses, while social development got R77.8 million for salary top-ups for additional compliance support duties and employment risk support.  Roads and transport got R45.5 million for job creation through road maintenance.  Nkomo-Ralehoko explained that the tough economic times had resulted in revenue shortfalls and increased pressure on public finances.  “Gauteng is already working with the Infrastructure South Africa Agency in the Presidency and is planning to set up infrastructure investment to revive the provincial economy.  This drive will eventually see blacks, women and young people drawn into the thrust of the economy of the province,” she indicated.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Ina Opperman at The Citizen

EXECUTIVE PAY / GOLDEN HANDSHAKES

Sasol gets slap at AGM from unhappy investors over executive pay policy and ‘golden handshakes’

BL Premium reports that at the Sasol annual general meeting on Friday, 28% of shareholders voted against the petrochemical group’s remuneration policy.  Moreover, 56% voted against the implementation report, which detailed how former joint CEOs Stephen Cornell and Bongani Nqwababa were cumulatively paid almost R100m, of which R35m was for “mutual separation”.  The exit of the CEOs from Sasol came five months after the full extent of the problems at the Lake Charles operation in the US became known to the market and costs ballooned, causing the share price to plummet.  Sasol chair Sipho Nkosi said although an independent review on what went wrong at Lake Charles — which has not been made public — found no wrongdoing on the part of the joint CEOs, the board decided that the best interests of the company would be served by an expedited separation.  “We still had to respect rights and contractual obligations of the joint CEOs ... in our view [the separation arrangements] were appropriate and in the best interest of the company.”  The remuneration votes were nonbinding and advisory in nature but, in terms of the King code on corporate governance, as they were not passed by more than 75% of the vote, the board must engage shareholders.  A special resolution on the remuneration of nonexecutive directors was narrowly passed with 76% of the vote.  Sasol announced on Wednesday that the fees would be slashed by 20% from what was proposed in the notice of the AGM and that a new framework for nonexecutive director fees would be put forward for shareholders to vote on in 2021.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lisa Steyn at BusinessLive (paywall access only). Read too, Golden handshakes given for resolving Lake Charles Chemicals Project issues, at Business Report

RISK COVER

Civil servants continue to be hit with fraudulent insurance policy deductions

Business Times reports that fraudulent insurance policies are a source of misery for many civil servants in SA and have been for years.  Back in 2008, Charles Pillai, who was the ombud for financial services providers at the time, said his office had received an influx of complaints against a number of financial services providers relating to fraudulent policies.  The issue is making headlines again, with teachers employed by the state reporting that they've discovered unauthorised deductions from their salaries, some dating back a year.  Apparently, the fraud is often perpetrated by representatives of independent financial advisers, who in turn have contracts with insurers.  The reps are incentivised to find clients to whom the independent agent can sell policies.  The reps allegedly source or buy the personal information of state employees.  All they need is an ID number and the civil servant’s employee number or Persal (Personnel & Salary System) number and they’re able to write the policy.  Basil Manuel of the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of SA (Naptosa) said illegal deductions from civil servants’ salaries was an ongoing problem:  “I can’t comment on the prevalence, but I reckon it’s rife because people don’t interrogate their pay slips.”  One teacher observed:  “We’re easy targets because we don’t’ get regular pay slips.”  Four teachers interviewed this week said they found that they’ve been paying premiums for a fraudulent group schemes policy, and one was also paying for a fraudulent funeral policy.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Angelique Ardé at BusinessLive (paywall access only)

SUSPENSIONS / STEPPING ASIDE

ANC to present legal opinion at NEC on whether members should be forced to ‘step aside’ when facing official charges

BL Premium reports that the ANC will present a legal opinion at its national executive committee (NEC) meeting this week on whether members should be forced to step down when facing official charges.  This will be in the wake of one of its most senior leaders, secretary-general Ace Magashule, appearing in court on graft charges.  Deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte said on Friday that the party had solicited a legal opinion from senior council on the way forward.  Duarte indicated that it would be a “big discussion and a difficult discussion”.  The ANC has come under increasing pressure to deal with corruption within its ranks, especially after allegations surfaced of corruption related to Covid-19 tenders for personal protective equipment (PPE).  But despite the party indicating at its last NEC meeting that it was taking a hard line against corruption, it has not been able to implement the decision that ANC members or leaders must step aside from their positions in government and the party when formally charged.  Addressing his supporters outside court, where he appeared on corruption charges, Magashule, in a clear defiance of the NEC decision, said he would not step down from his position and that no-one could remove him.  He said that only the branches of the ANC and not individuals had the right to tell him to step down.  The ANC’s current rule states that if a member has been charged it is up to them to voluntarily make the decision to step aside based on political morality and their conscience.

Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Genevieve Quintal at BusinessLive (paywall access only). Read too, ANC’s ‘step-aside’ migraine worsens, on page 4 of The Sunday Times of 22 November 2020

OTHER HEADLINES OF INTEREST

• Editorial: Worrying that CCMA budget cuts too big and too sudden to avoid a dramatic impact on services, at BusinessLive
• President appoints Tsakani Maluleke as new auditor-general after unanimous recommendation by parliament, at BusinessLive
• Cabinet adopts national anti-corruption strategy, at BusinessLive