In our Thursday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
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Consider candidates over 60 years for Eskom CEO appointment, Gordhan tells board BL Premium reports that the exclusion of candidates above the age of 60 years for the top role at Eskom left vacant after the resignation of André de Ruyter seems to be one of the sticking points in an increasingly fractious relationship between the board and Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan. , In a letter dated 1 September to Eskom board chair Mpho Makwana, Gordhan told the board to also consider candidates above the age of 60 for the position of group CEO. “The board previously informed me that the candidates that were above 60 years of age were not considered for the vacant position of GCEO of Eskom. I therefore suggest that the board consider including candidates above 60,” the letter indicated. The embattled utility has been without a CEO since De Ruyter left the role in February. The Makwana-led board is said to have provided Gordhan with one name, believed to be the former head of group capital, Dan Marokane, for the position of CEO. Gordhan in the letter told Makwana that the recommendation of only one candidate fell short of the memorandum of incorporation (MOI) of Eskom and guidelines for the appointment of CEOs of state-owned enterprises. “As a result, I instruct the board to comply with the MOI and guidelines and recommend three appointable candidates to the shareholder for the vacant position of the GCEO of Eskom,” Gordhan wrote. Eskom said the board deliberated on Gordhan’s directive at its sitting of 4 September and its governance and strategy committee was applying its mind and working towards a speedy resolution. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thando Maeko & Kabelo Khumalo at BusinessLive (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Emotional memorial held on Wednesday for the three mariners who died at sea last week News24 reports that in an emotional memorial held at the Wynberg Military Indoor Sports Centre on Wednesday, hundreds of family members, colleagues, and friends gathered to pay tribute to Lieutenant-Commander Gillian Elizabeth Hector, 33, Master Warrant Officer William Masela Mathipa, 48, and Warrant Officer Class One Mmokwapa Lucas Mojela, 43, who died at sea last week. They were part of a crew carrying out a routine training exercise on the SAS Manthatisi submarine at the time of the incident. Navy Chief Vice Admiral Monde Lobese said the three main sections of the Simons Town Navy Base would be renamed in honour of the sailors. This was met with loud applause and a standing ovation by all in attendance. The Submarine Training Centre will be renamed the Gillian Hector Training Centre; the Submarine Squadron Building, called the Orca Building, will be renamed the Mmokwapa Mojela building; and the Submarine Battery Workshop will be renamed the William Mathipa Workshop. As he recalled the moments leading up to the fateful incident, Lobese called to the podium all the remaining crew members who were aboard the submarine. One had a limp, the result of an injury he sustained after he was swept into the sea. "These men standing here before us displayed [bravery] in trying to save those that went overboard […] The loss suffered by the SA Navy's submarine squadron is great. Not only have we lost qualified specialists who have served their country with pride and diligence, but the loss of experience and competence will be felt for many years to come. Although this loss is great, it pales in comparison to the loss of the families who have [lost loved ones]," Lobese said. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lisalee Solomons at News24. Read too, Kommetjie tragedy: Three mariners remembered as pioneers in their field, at EWN Police officer shot dead in Mabopane, three officers wounded Pretoria News reports that barely a month after President Cyril Ramaphosa commemorated the deaths of 34 police officers who died in the line of duty in the past year, news broke that another one had been shot dead in Mabopane on Friday. Three other police officers were wounded. The officers were conducting crime prevention patrols when they stopped a suspicious vehicle and ordered the driver to produce his licence. Four other occupants inside the vehicle started shooting at them. Sergeant Holeng Makobe died on the spot, while the three others were rushed to hospital. Investigators later discovered that two police officers’ firearms were missing. Mokobe had been with the SAPS for 15 years and left behind two children. National police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe expressed concern about the number of officers killed on duty and indicated: “Management has urged members to act first when they have to use force proportional to the threat.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Mashudu Sadike at Pretoria News. Read too, Police unions say cost cutting measures in the SAPS will be ‘disastrous’, at The Star
Payday came, but not for hundreds of City of Tshwane employees Moneyweb reports that employees of the embattled Tshwane metro are used to getting paid on the 25th of every month, but some were left empty-handed this week. This after more than 400 staff members received letters challenging them to show why they were entitled to their salaries despite reports that they failed to execute their duties. It is not known how many responded successfully. For some it would be the second month without pay as their salaries were also withheld in August. The Independent Municipal and Allied Trade Union (Imatu) went to court last week to challenge the withholding of the August salaries and the dismissal of some of its members for participating in the unprotected strike that has been ongoing since July. The Labour Court dismissed Imatu’s application. The unprotected strike follows the refusal of the City to pay the 5.4% salary increase agreed at the local government bargaining council as the last leg of a three-year wage agreement. Tshwane applied for exemption from the agreement for this year’s increase, but the application was dismissed by the bargaining council. The metro is taking the decision on review. Services have been seriously impacted by the strike and associated violence aimed at intimidating those employees who do want to work. Mayor Cilliers Brink from the DA insists there is no money in Tshwane’s empty pockets for the increase, which would cost an additional R600 million. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Moneyweb Cracks appear in Tshwane governing coalition over how to resolve ongoing wage strike Moneyweb reports that Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink from the Democratic Alliance (DA) has taken a hardline stance towards the wage strike in the capital city over wage increases. The unprotected strike follows the refusal of the employer, led by a coalition of the DA, ActionSA, VF+, IFP and the ACDP, to pay a 5.4% salary increase agreed at the local government bargaining council. Brink insists there is no money in Tshwane’s empty pockets for the increase and refuses to negotiate with the unions. He has characterised the events as criminality, rather than labour action. His coalition partners are however increasingly questioning his position. This raises the question of who will budge first – the striking workers who are left out of pocket or the mayor who may be losing support from nervous coalition partners and fed-up residents. Last week ActionSA said it would lodge a dispute within the coalition if necessary as it wanted the mayor to seek a compromise with the unions. But Brink’s supporters point out that municipal unions Samwu and Imatu deny their participation in the strike, and say there is no point in negotiating with them if they have no part in it. A meeting of the coalition partners at local level “did not find agreement”, according to ActionSA. A decision was taken to refer the matter to the national coalition oversight group, which consists of all the party leaders. A date has not yet been set for them to discuss it. But, the party said in a statement on Tuesday it had met with Samwu to help end the strike. “It is not good enough for Brink and the DA to force residents to live without refuse removal or other basic services in order to avoid the rational need to sit down and engage the unions in order to achieve the compromise that gets service delivery back again,” ActionSA pointed out. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at Moneyweb (scroll down)
Glencore and Seriti weigh job cuts in SA due to ‘dire’ freight train situation Bloomberg reports that Glencore and Seriti Resources are in talks to cut hundreds of jobs as their ability to export coal is stymied by inefficiencies at the state-run freight company. Transnet, which transports the fuel from mines in Mpumalanga to Richards Bay Coal Terminal, has been hobbled by sabotage, cable theft and aging equipment. While it has taken steps to improve security and ease procurement rules to lower costs, performance has declined. In a statement calling on President Cyril Ramaphosa to intervene, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said: “Transnet’s operations are a crucial cog in the country’s economy. “The situation is very dire.” Glencore has started a so-called Section 189 process by beginning consultations with labour on job cuts. The process could affect more than 200 workers at its iMpunzi coal mining complex. The potential job cuts at Seriti’s Klipspruit opencast mine could be more than 600. Lower coal prices have also added pressure on operations. Miners have tried to get around the railway challenges by using trucks to transport coal from mines to the coast, but that became less attractive after prices dropped. Ramaphosa described the constraints as “a crisis of catastrophic proportions” in a meeting with key exporters in April and created a task force that included private companies to look for solutions. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Paul Burkhardt at Moneyweb
Bric by bric, labour ministers vow to grow small business in global markets TimesLIVE reports that at the Brics employment and labour ministers’ meeting this week, member countries will prioritise the protection and upskilling of workers in the informal economy and introduce small businesses to international markets. This was indicated at a briefing in Durban by Department of Employment and Labour (DEL) Minister Thulas Nxesi. He said the informal sector was the major contributor to the country’s workforce, therefore finding collaborative ways to develop small businesses would go a long way to grow the economy and ensure job creation. “Informal economy contributes the majority of the workforce, yet it is not a sector we have focused on to ensure workers are protected. Increasing production in our economy must be a collaboration between business, government and workers through their structures and those of the community. We’re trying to ensure that collaboration but do it at international level,” he said. eThekwini hosted the fourth Brics employment working group (EWG) meeting on Wednesday and Thursday. It will then join a meeting of the ministers on Thursday and Friday. These meetings aim to “deepen collaboration in employment creation and labour market governance” between these countries. In addition to the Brics ministers, Nxesi’s counterparts from Cuba, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia and Zimbabwe were involved. Nxesi said the Brics employment and labour ministers identified four “pivotal” areas of focus for this year. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Lwazi Hlangu at TimesLIVE
Take-home pay improved in August as inflation slowed and companies became more resilient to load-shedding BL Premium reports that take-home pay improved for a second consecutive month in August, an indication that some industries have become progressively more resistant to the effects of load-shedding, with companies reducing their energy dependence on Eskom. After a notable uptick in July, BankservAfrica’s take-home pay index published on Wednesday showed the average nominal take-home pay increased to R15,578 in August – 5.8% higher than a year earlier – and up from July’s R15,525. BankservAfrica’s Shergeran Naidoo said that after having stabilised in the second quarter, nominal salaries increased in July and August despite an economic narrative that was largely unchanged. “Encouragingly, indications that some industries have become progressively more resilient to the effects of load-shedding, as companies reduce their energy dependence on the embattled Eskom, has been an underlying positive development in recent months,” Naidoo said. If sustained, the improved conditions in the private sector could be a supportive factor for employment and remuneration prospects, he added. Economist Elize Kruger commented that a notable moderation in consumer inflation over the past two months had increased the levels of real take-home pay. BankservAfrica data also suggested a slight improvement in the job market in the third quarter. About 187,500 more salaries were paid in July and August, almost offsetting second-quarter losses of 198,000 but also confirming the sideways trend in the number of salaries paid so far in 2023. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Thuletho Zwane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Read too, August salaries up 5.8% compared to 2022 despite tough economy, at The Citizen
Solidarity to fight to stop ANC ‘capture’ of schools BizNews reports that Solidarity is gearing up to fight the African National Congress (ANC) government in court to stop it from “capturing” SA’s schools and stripping parents of a say in the education of their children. BizNews interviewed the trade union’s Johnell van Vollenhoven after a Parliamentary Portfolio Committee accepted the BELA Amendment Bill this week. The Amendment Bill was approved for submission to the National Assembly (NA) as the next step in the process of making it into law after the ANC and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) “used their numbers to obtain a majority”. Van Vollenhoven said the law would mean “that we as parents and our governing bodies that we choose to govern our schools will be stripped of their powers”. The Bill was accepted despite widespread objection from the public with nearly 9,000 of the 11,000 inputs against the amendment of existing laws. Van Vollenhoven charged that “they are not interested in looking at what the people are saying, they are only interested in pushing through their own ideology in this regard.” Listen to Chris Steyn’s interview with Johnell van Vollenhoven at BizNews. Read Solidarity’s press statement in regard to this issue at Polity
Cellphone records, witness statements outstanding in VIP cops’ N1 assault case News24 reports that cellphone records and some witness statements are still outstanding in the case of eight Presidential Protection Services officers who allegedly assaulted motorists on the N1 highway in Gauteng in July. However, state advocate Elize le Roux assured the Randburg Magistrate's Court on Wednesday: "The investigation is nearing its completion." The eight men face 12 charges, including pointing a firearm, reckless and negligent driving, malicious damage to property, assault with the intent to cause grievous bodily harm, obstruction of justice, and assault by way of threat. They are out on R10,000 bail each. The men were caught on camera allegedly assaulting four occupants of a blue Volkswagen Polo. The case was postponed to 9 November. During a previous court appearance in August, the court slammed the State's "hasty" decision to prosecute the eight officers. "One would have expected them to wait a while, gather their evidence, and thereafter, follow due processes," Magistrate Hlengiwe Mkhabisi said at the time. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Iavan Pijoos at News24. Read too, N1 assault case: State still waiting for cellphone records and identity parade of VIP protection officers, at The Citizen. And also, N1 assault: All eight VIP protection officers choose to be represented by one lawyer, at EWN Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Eight years for Gauteng government to investigate a R2.3 million fraud case against health official News24 reports that it took eight years for the Gauteng government to investigate a fraud case against a provincial health official. This was revealed on Wednesday by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi in a written reply to the DA in the Gauteng legislature. The official was accused of registering as a director of a daycare NGO that benefitted R2.4 million from the Gauteng Department of Social Development. The DA had asked why the forensic investigation into allegations of fraudulent activity took so long, as the case was received on 2 July 2014 and finalised only on 15 November 2022. Lesufi explained that the case took a long time to be completed as it was initially not allocated timeously due to capacity constraints. "When the project was ultimately allocated to the investigation team, they resigned while the allegations were still being investigated. The project could not be replicated on time as the other team members were also finalising other assigned projects, resulting in further delays," he said. Lesufi indicated that the case was then allocated to the newly recruited director, who resigned while the investigation was in the execution phase. In the end there was no evidence indicating that the official benefitted from the funding. When asked who did the investigation and how much it cost, Lesufi said it was conducted internally by staff members in the provincial forensic audit unit and no service provider was paid. Gauteng DA health spokesperson Jack Bloom said in other cases that took more than four years to conclude, the department blamed capacity constraints as the provincial forensic audit unit experienced a high staff turnover rate due to continuous resignations of staff members. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Yoliswa Sobuwa at News24
Survivor of fatal Golden Arrow bus crash alleges driver was speeding and accident could have been prevented EWN reports that one of the survivors of a fatal commuter bus crash in Cape Town this week believes the accident could have been prevented. Three people died and 21 others were injured when a Golden Arrow bus overturned in rainy conditions on Monday. The bus driver has been suspended while investigations by the bus company and the police into the cause of the accident are underway. The Golden Arrow bus was travelling from Town Centre in Mitchells Plain to Century City when it crashed in the Athlone area. Shaheema River, who was one of the passengers on the bus, survived the ordeal and has alleged that the bus driver was speeding. "No matter how many times he was being told he's speeding, he didn't stop, you know. So, I just feel like it could've been prevented," she asserted. However, Golden Arrow's corporate affairs executive, John Dammert, said it would be premature to speculate on the cause of the accident. Read the original of the short report in the above regard by Ntuthuzelo Nene at EWN
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