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Last Update -Saturday 18 May 2013, 18:58
SA LABOUR NEWS - SPOWART RESOURCES
Cosatu questions time taken to start Nkandla investigation
Tuesday, 14 May 2013 12:36
EWN reports that Cosatu said on Monday it was concerned at the time it was taking the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) to begin its probe into government's spending on President Jacob Zuma's Nkandla home in circumstances where there was clearly prima facie evidence of wrongdoing. The SIU confirmed it had not yet started its probe, despite Public Works Minister Thulas Nxesi saying in January that he would ask it to investigate what he said was money spent only on security upgrades. Cosatu’s Patrick Craven said that, given the clear evidence that there was something wrong which the minister had made absolutely clear, Zuma has no choice but to issue a proclamation mandating the investigation.
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Stones have been lobbed at the National Union of Metalworkers of SA’s head office in Newtown, Johannesburg, breaking six windows and damaging a sign, police said on Tuesday. A man was seen throwing the stones at 2am on Monday. The security guards tried to chase him, but he got away. A case of malicious damage to property was being investigated. "[We] are shocked and devastated by this latest attack on our head office, which is a property built on workers’ meagre wages," Numsa spokesman Castro Ngobese said in a statement condemning the attack. He said that this was not the first case the union had reported to the police.
Business Report writes that the possibility of centralised bargaining in the platinum industry was unlikely to materialise this year, Lonmin acting chief executive Simon Scott said yesterday. He was speaking on the release of the company’s interim results and said he expected to negotiate wages at company level this year and not yet through the proposed sector-wide bargaining forum. “That’s not to say it [centralised bargaining] won’t ever be on the table. It makes a lot of sense,” he added. The Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU) has indicated it would prefer to negotiate at mine level.
Sowetan reports that three Gauteng government departments occupying the same building are facing court prosecution for failing to adhere to occupational health and safety regulations. The building in Fox Street in the Johannesburg CBD houses the departments of health, of community safety and of finance, and is owned by the Gauteng department of infrastructure development, which oversees the construction and management of public infrastructure. Government employees working in the building said they have had to endure numerous health hazards, including poor ventilation, leakages and blocked emergency exits. Sowetan recently visited the building and reports on the bad conditions it found.
Excessive regulation and red tape, and a lack of skilled workers, are major concerns among South African privately held businesses, the first-quarter Grant Thornton International Business Report (IBR) released on Monday showed. These factors, the businesses indicate, are directly restricting their expansion. The report surveys 3,000 businesses across 44 economies each quarter, about 150 of which are based in SA. The skills deficit in SA continues to be a concern, with 40% of those surveyed citing a lack of skilled workers, and 39% indicating excessive regulation and red tape as major concerns. Despite concerns, business owners in SA, however, continue to be positive about the next 12 months, with 48% of executives surveyed stating that they are optimistic about business prospects for 2013.
In our Tuesday morning roundup, see
EWN reported on Monday that the Western Cape Agriculture Department believes farmworkers were overlooked in a De Doorns panel discussion on Saturday. A government delegation led by Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe addressed farmworker and farmer unions in the town. Western Cape Agriculture MEC Gerrit van Rensburg said he was concerned farm labourers were not there to voice their concerns. “I think that we need to talk to the farmworkers. And I agree with the Deputy President that we must write down our successes. Now we need to stop talking and start implementing.” In a separate report, The Star reported on Monday that Motlanthe had recommended at the meeting that farmworker unions and farmers be given three weeks to submit a list of De Doorns farms in which the government should invest to stabilise agriculture in the area. In a third report on Monday, The New Age reported that the Farm Workers Rights Coalition said representatives would meet today (Tuesday) to take stock of the problems affecting workers in the Western Cape and would decide on a course of action.
Sowetan reports that traffic officers in parts of Mpumalanga embarked on a go-slow yesterday demanding the resignation of the boss they have accused of racism. The officers from Mbombela, White River and Hazyview gathered outside their headquarters in Jones Street, Nelspruit. They reported for duty but not much work was done. They accused Mbombela traffic police chief Eddie Prollius of treating their "white colleagues and some black officials differently" to them. "We are tired of him. He runs this department like a spaza shop," said one unnamed officer. A month ago, Prollius was placed on special leave while the allegations were being investigated. He was due to resume work yesterday, but arrived to find the officers at the gate with placards demanding that he leave and he turned back.
Sowetan reports that Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) officers who embarked on an illegal strike yesterday could face disciplinary action. Municipal spokesman Sam Modiba said the municipality had interdicted the strike on Friday, but members of the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) still went ahead. Modiba said not only did Samwu not obtain proper approval to embark on the strike, but EMPD officers were also classified as part of essential services and therefore not allowed to strike. Nonetheless, hundreds of Ekurhuleni metro police officers, security personnel and traffic wardens downed tools and gathered at the Germiston Civic Centre. They want EMPD chief Hlula Msimang to establish a commission of inquiry into claims of racism in the department and officers' salary levels to be brought on par with other metro police departments such as Durban and Johannesburg.
Stephen Grootes writes that Joseph Mathunjwa, the leader of the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union, will be the focal point of this year’s mining wage negotiating season. He is the guy who has to deliver – despite AMCU’s non-existent track record – and his weakness is that he can’t say he was elected in a democratic process because the union has never once in its 12 years held an elective leadership conference. It cannot be said of rival the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) that members weren’t given the opportunity of casting a ballot. As independent labour analyst Gavin Brown is quoted as saying about AMCU, “Where is the mandate?” Brown reckons AMCU’s real problem is going to be “controlling the stuff at ground level. That’s really where things go pop”. Brown says the problem, as it always is for those who aspire to power is that, eventually, you have to deliver. And that’s just going to be impossible this year, given the financial circumstances of mining companies.Latest News
- Platinum belt incident free
- Big raid by police on Rustenburg platinum mines to find guns and weapons
- In interests of government’s infrastructure build, Gigaba calls for truce with labour
- Marikana sangoma murder case postponed
- Heading for trouble: Public sector wage bill must drop if ‘fiscal cliff’ is to be avoided
- Vavi appeals to Numsa for unity, tolerance
- Mines can’t afford pay rises, so strikes may result, says Impala Platinum
- SA unions’ state of flux is ideal time to initiate debate
- Police could have done more at Marikana, Amcu’s lawyer tells Farlam inquiry
- With large Esop payments blown, destitute Kumba strikers appeal for NUM’s help
- MINISTRY OF PUBLIC SERVICE AND ADMIN: 47,450 unfunded vacant posts in Limpopo disestablished
- DEPT. OF LABOUR: Compensation Fund takes huge strides to tackle fraud and corruption and aims to reduce claims backlog
- DEPT. OF LABOUR: Labour Minister calls on parties in Marikana to display leadership
- DEPT. OF LABOUR: Labour Minister to table Budget Vote Speech under theme: “Working towards a peaceful environment in labour relations and collective bargaining”
- SADTU: North West career guidance exhibition a success
- NEHAWU condemns the death of twenty three initiates in Mpumalanga
- COSATU Western Cape: City spin doctors lies to Cape Town citizens
- COSATU calls for dismissal of Minister Donald Grant
- SAMA welcomes Professor Karabus home
- SADTU replies to Helen Zille