Today's Labour News
This news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.
Legal threats set to stymie Cosatu’s bailout plan for Eskom
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Bloomberg writes that a plan proposed by Cosatu to get pension funds and state lenders to refinance part of Eskom’s debt faces hurdles that may be impossible to overcome.
Old Mutual searching for new CEO in spite of Moyo’s interdict application
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BusinessLive reports that Old Mutual indicated that it would continue with its CEO recruitment process after the High Court in Johannesburg on Tuesday reserved judgment on the matter.
ConCourt criticises lower court judgment on compensation fund coverage for domestic workers as ‘drastic’
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BusinessLive reports that the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) justices have criticised orders by a lower court relating to the constitutional validity of the exclusion of domestic workers employed in private households from the definition of “employee” in the 1993 Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (Coida) as “drastic” and scant on detail.
Sadtu expresses caution over Eskom bailout through pension funds
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The Star reports that the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) has warned that labour federation Cosatu’s plan to financially assist Eskom with public servants’ pension funds will not go ahead before workers have been adequately consulted.
Hawks nab another senior eThekwini official in R389m fraudulent tender probe
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TimesLIVE reports that a senior eThekwini official has been arrested by the Hawks and was scheduled to appear in the Durban specialised commercial crime court on Tuesday in connection with the ongoing R389m Durban Solid Waste tender (DSW) scandal.
Pupils blow the whistle on Eastern Cape teacher who allegedly sexually assaulted them
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TimesLIVE reports that an Eastern Cape teacher was scheduled to appear in the Mqanduli magistrate's court on Tuesday for allegedly sexually assaulting several of his pupils.
Sibanye workers at Kroondal kept underground for safety reasons during fire incident
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Mining Weekly reports on an incident that happened at Sibanye-Stillwater’s Kroondal mine, in Rustenburg, on Monday, which required 378 mineworkers being kept underground for safety reasons.
Nuclear Energy Corporation scrambles to pay salaries, asks subsidiary for loan
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BL Premium reports that the Nuclear Energy Corporation of SA (Necsa) is once again scrambling to pay salaries, this time by soliciting a loan from its only profitable subsidiary.
ConCourt to rule on applicability of Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act to domestic workers
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BusinessLive reports that employers will have to pay Compensation Fund contributions for their domestic workers should the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) confirm a lower court order relating to domestic work.
SAA warns employees it is moving ahead with plan that could see with job cuts
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BL Premium reports that South African Airways (SAA) has told all its almost 5,000 employees that it will push ahead with a plan that could see it cut jobs.
Afternoon roundup of labour news on Monday, 9 March 2020
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In our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Monday, 9 March 2020.
CDE’s Ann Bernstein calls for a new approach to the jobs crisis
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BusinessLive reports that one of a raft of proposals made by Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) executive director Ann Bernstein on Thursday was that the government has to shift its industrial policy from a focus on capital-intensive industries towards labour-intensive ones if it was to make any inroads into the unemployment catastrophe.
SABS standard on ethical guidelines for traditional health practitioners in public comment phase
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Business Insider SA reports that a technical committee of the SA Bureau of Standards (SABS) has entered the public-inquiry phase of drafting an ethics guideline for traditional healers in SA.
Durban laboratory worker faces disciplinary action for fake coronavirus voice note
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TimesLIVE reports that a worker at a state-owned laboratory service is facing disciplinary action after the circulation of a voice note which suggested that Prince Mshiyeni Memorial Hospital in Umlazi, Durban, had received a number of patients with coronavirus.
Report highlights shocking level of violence against sex workers
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GroundUp reports that a report released last week revealed that a hundred-and-one female sex workers, some of whom were transwomen, died in 2018/19, while half of them were murdered.
Decision not to increase judges' pay may lead to exodus, lawyers' association warns
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TimesLIVE reports that the National Association of Democratic Lawyers (Nadel) has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to urgently reconsider his decision not to increase judges' salaries and look instead at other ways of saving on government spending.
CPUT shut on Monday in the interests of staff and student safety
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TimesLIVE reports that the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT) closed its campuses on Monday in the interests of staff and student safety.
Roundup on Monday, 9 March 2020 of weekend labour reports
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In our roundup of weekend news, see
summaries of our selection of South African
labour-related stories that appeared since
Friday, 6 March 2020.
Cosatu mulls court action if government fails to implement terms of 2018 wage agreement
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Sunday Independent reports that the National Treasury hopes a solution will be found on the state wage bill after unions rejected government attempts to block a deal struck two years ago.
DA accuses ANC of looting Joburg coffers by reversing insourcing of workers
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ANA reports that the Democratic Alliance (DA) on Sunday accused the African National Congress (ANC) of being on a mission "to loot" Johannesburg's coffers by reversing the insourcing of workers.
Court finds against unions and rules that Telkom can go ahead with retrenchments
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The Citizen reports that Telkom has been given the go-ahead to continue its retrenchment process after the Labour Court on Thursday dismissed an application launched by two unions for an urgent interdict to pause it.
Exxaro appoints first-ever female mining manager
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Mining Weekly reports that diversified miner Exxaro Resources has appointed Tamara Qwatekana as the company’s first ever female mining manager.
Government forges ahead with plans to trim staff at diplomatic missions
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BusinessLive reports that the government is forging ahead with plans to trim the size of its diplomatic missions as it battles to cut costs and return SA to financial health.
Bodies of three miners missing after quake at AngloGold’s Mponeng mine found on Friday
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BusinessLive reports that a level 2 magnitude tremor at midday on Thursday killed three miners at AngloGold Ashanti's Mponeng operation.
Afternoon roundup of labour news on Thursday, 5 March 2020
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In our afternoon roundup, see summaries
of our selection of South African labour-
related stories that appeared thus far on
Thursday, 5 March 2020.
Numsa heads to Constitutional Court to have retrenched Aveng Trident Steel workers reinstated
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Engineering News reports that the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) has approached the Constitutional Court to seek the reinstatement of 733 workers who were dismissed by Aveng Trident Steel.
Spike in CCMA cases since introduction of national minimum wage
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Sowetan reports that the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) has seen an increase in cases since the passing of the National Minimum Wage Act.
Massive R1.4bn boost to get Cape Town’s central line back on track
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News24Wire reports that the Department of Transport has budgeted a massive amount of money to get the problematic Cape Town central train line back on track.
Coloured man loses court bid that he was denied promotion at correctional services due to his race and opposition to affirmative action
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The Star reports that Freddie Engelbrecht, Western Cape Correctional Services deputy commissioner, this week failed to prove to court that he was overlooked for promotion due to his race and his political position on affirmative action and employment equity policies.
Prasa fails to provide security plan or a tender for new security contracts as court ordered
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GroundUp reports that the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) has failed to provide a security plan or a tender for new security contracts, as required by a court ruling made in November 2019.