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.
In our Friday morning roundup, see
summaries of our selection of recent South African
labour-related reports.
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SABC headquarters evacuated on Thursday after fire, no injuries reported TimesLIVE reports that the SA Broadcasting Corporation’s (SABC’s) Auckland Park headquarters were evacuated after a fire broke out on Thursday, a day after officials from the state broadcaster were outlining plans in parliament to overhaul its ageing facilities. The fire is said to have started in the building’s lift pit area on the ground floor. No significant damage was caused and no injuries reported. On Wednesday, SABC CFO Yolande van Biljon told parliament’s portfolio committee on communications and digital technologies that the public broadcaster’s facilities, and its Auckland Park headquarters in particular, were more than 45 years old and had received limited or no maintenance over the past 15 years. DA MP, Natasha Mazzone, had asked the SABC about the dilapidated state of its buildings, including a lack of water and faulty air-conditioning in studios. Van Biljon said the SABC was significantly affected by water cuts as was the case in Johannesburg in general. “Ultimately, we don’t have water to run our chillers, which is what powers our air-cons. We are then forced to power these down,” she explained. The SABC had backup water on campus for as long as a day and was increasing that to about two-and-a-half days, she added. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Andisiwe Makinana at BusinessLive Acting commander of 121 battalion describes horror and devastation of deadly veld fire at Lohatla base TimesLIVE reports that the acting commander of 121 infantry battalion on Thursday described the horror and devastation soldiers faced when a deadly veld fire spread to the Lohatla military base last week. Maj ZN Zulu was briefing reporters before a visit by defence minister Thandi Modise and her deputy Thabang Makwetla to the base. He was in a meeting when he received an alert of a fire on the eastern side of the Northern Cape base from a fellow commander of another battalion. Zulu and the other commander rushed to the scene to assist. As they focused on extinguishing that fire, another blaze was coming from a different direction. It was that one that caused damage to equipment, vehicles and the soldiers' property. At the site, the devastation of the blaze was evident with burnt military vehicles, steel beds and tent frames, empty fire extinguishers and charred camping equipment all that remained. There was evidence of completely or partially burnt tents which had housed the soldiers. Among the ruins were scattered and charred magazines, cooking pots and eating utensils. The fire claimed the lives of six soldiers and three others suffered severe burns. The victims were part of a group of 1,300 soldiers who were at the combat training centre preparing for an annual army exercise, Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Khanyisile Ngcobo at TimesLIVE. See too photos of the remains of Lohatlha military base at TimesLIVE Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Tshwane metro axes senior Samwu official 'linked' to waste truck firebombing News24 reports that a senior member of the SA Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu) in the Tshwane regional executive, who was employed by the City of Tshwane, has been dismissed after video footage emerged allegedly linked him to the firebombing in August of a waste removal truck. Several vehicles have been torched since the end of July, which coincides with an illegal strike by disgruntled employees over the refusal of the metro to pay salary increases. One such incident happened on 29 August, when a waste removal truck belonging to a contractor of the city was set on fire. Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink revealed on Thursday that the firebombing was caught on video. He reported: “Video evidence shows a group of people being dropped off on the street. They then proceed to attack the waste truck and set it alight. Finally, they are collected by the same vehicle that dropped them off and they leave the scene of the crime.” Brink said the vehicle was linked to a Samwu official. "Yesterday, the city manager informed me that investigators had established that the official's alibi about the possession of his vehicle on the day of the attack could not be verified and that the city manager had issued [the official] with a letter of dismissal," Brink advised. The mayor said all the evidence had been handed over to police shortly after the incident and the investigation was still ongoing, but no arrests had yet been made. Samwu has repeatedly said its members were not involved in the illegal strike or the torching of vehicles and intimidation of city workers. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Alex Mitchley at News24. Read too, Senior Samwu official implicated in Tshwane arson, at BusinessLive. En ook, Bewyse betrek Samwu-hoë by aanval op Tshwane-vullistrok, by Maroela Media
Gaping holes in Gauteng’s ambitious jobs targets BL Premium reports that the Gauteng Department of Economic Development (GDED) has failed to meet its ambitious job creation targets to address the unemployment crisis ravaging SA’s economic and financial heartland. Of the 8-million unemployed people in the country, 2.6-million are in Gauteng. Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi launched the Nasi Ispani campaign in June to try to address the crisis. According to the GDED’s annual report for 2022/23, only 141 jobs were created in the creative industry against a target of 40,515. Out of a targeted 249,334 gig work opportunities (those created through content development programmes and product development projects), only 372 were created. A total of 2,935 jobs had to be created in industries not classified as high-growth sectors, but only 539 jobs were created. In global business services (GBS) – township-based jobs created through GBS and digital innovation services – only 320 jobs were created out of a target of 100,000 jobs. GDED accounting officer Blake Mosley-Lefatola said that through initiatives such as the Jobs and War Room, the department had spared “no effort in developing strategic interventions designed to transform, revitalise, promote and grow the township economy. These catalytic programmes remain one of the department’s strategic priorities and will contribute to job creation and poverty reduction through a sustainable and inclusive economy.” But, DA Gauteng spokesperson for economic development, Nicola du Plessis, noted that the GDED was continually failing to meet critical job creation targets, “leaving our unemployed residents in the lurch”. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only) More than 3,500 without work after Treasury cuts funding for PEP jobs programme in eThekwini News24 reports that the National Treasury has cut funding for the Public Employment Programme (PEP) in eThekwini, prompting the city to immediately terminate 3,541 of the more than 6,000 temporary employees hired through the programme. In a statement this week, the city’s spokesperson Gugu Sisilana advised: “With the Public Employment Programme in its third and final year of implementation, the budget for 2023/24 financial year was revised by National Treasury from the originally gazetted R263 million to R141 million. This significantly affected the municipality’s ability to retain the majority of beneficiaries. Those who have been retained are expected to work until June 2024, when the programme ends. This is indeed a very disappointing development that is beyond the municipality's control." She added that the municipality had been "hard at work exploring various solutions to minimise the impact on beneficiaries" and would continue exploring avenues to resuscitate the programme, including engaging with the National Treasury to request additional budget. On Thursday, the SA Municipal Workers’ Union’s (Samwu’s) eThekwini regional secretary, Xolani Dube, said: “Samwu calls on the eThekwini Municipality to reconsider its decision and take appropriate steps to employ all the employees permanently as the city needs more workers to clean and make our town attractive to tourists and its citizens.” He said the union was demanding the permanent retention of all workers who formed part of the PEP. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Nkosikhona Duma at News24 Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Sanral missed half its road targets, but at R3m board chair earned double the fees at Transnet, Eskom Fin24 reports that SA National Roads Agency (Sanral) board chair Themba Mhambi took home a startling R3 million in board fees over the past financial year, which was more than double that of former Transnet chair Popo Molefe or Eskom chair Malegapuru Makgoba in 2022. This made Mhambi one of the highest-earning chairpersons in the public sector, despite chairing one of the smaller entities. Non-executive directors are paid a daily rate approved by the minister responsible for the entity. The more meetings held, the more the board fees earned. Over 2022/23, Sanral held 24 board meetings, 19 of which were "special board meetings". Mhambi fumed at reporters’ questions and said that proof of his diligence and fairness as a chair was evidenced by the length of time that board meetings lasted. "Our meetings will start at 9 in the morning and end at 11 at night. For one simple reason, I believe in giving everybody, including the madman of the village, the opportunity to speak and to state their views," he said. But, while Sanral achieved an unqualified audit, it underperformed during the period under review. It resurfaced only half of the kilometers of road network it had planned to complete, and strengthened and rebuilt only half the kilometers it had planned to complete. Sanral also did not meet the conditions for a Treasury bailout. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Carol Paton at Fin24 (subscriber access only) Bafana head coach Broos admits to row between players and Safa over Afcon bonuses The Citizen reports that Bafana Bafana head coach Hugo Broos has admitted there is a dispute between his players and the SA Football Association (Safa) over payments ahead of next year’s Africa Cup of Nations finals. The draw for the Afcon finals were due to take place in Abidjan in the Ivory Coast on Thursday evening. Broos told SABC Sport at FNB Stadium on Thursday that there was a problem in terms of negotiations between the players and Safa. This comes after a huge bonus row erupted between Banyana Banyana and Safa on the eve of the Fifa Women’s World Cup earlier this year. “I can’t deny it, there are problems at the moment,” said the Bafana head coach. He went on to say: “You know, it’s always the same when the big tournaments are there – there’s a discussion about bonuses and so on … it’s always a discussion. At the moment the discussions are not so positive for the players. But I know, with my experience, in the end there will always be an agreement.” Broos added: “I am the guy in-between. It’s important for me ahead of the Afcon that these things are done. We will see in the next few weeks how things will go.” Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Jonty Mark at The Citizen Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Discovery Health CEO Ryan Noach resigns in management shakeup Fin24 reports that Discovery Health CEO Dr Ryan Noach has resigned after more than 15 years to pursue an entrepreneurial opportunity that falls outside of the healthcare and financial services sectors. The announcement was made by the Discovery Group on Thursday, the same day that its medical scheme headed by Noach came under fire from the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) for announcing 2024 contribution increases before the regulator had given it the go-ahead. However, Discovery said Noach's unexpected departure – which takes effect from 31 December 2023 – was not connected to the CMS's criticism and formed part of a more than year-long succession planning process. Noach will be succeeded by Dr Ronald Whelan as of 1 January 2024, though he will serve as a non-executive director on the Discovery Health Board from that date as part of the group's tradition of retaining the institutional knowledge and expertise of past leaders. Whelan, who holds an MBA, has extensive clinical and commercial healthcare experience and will take over from Noach after a three-month handover period. Discovery also announced that it is formalising its existing functions of group risk, umbrella funds, healthy company and its strategic client solutions hub into a new business unit called Discovery Corporate & Employee Benefits, which will be led by Nonkululeko Pitje from 1 January 2024. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Garth Theunissen at Fin24 (subscriber access only). See too, Discovery Health CEO Ryan Noach resigns, at BusinessLive Council for Medical Schemes softens stance on publicising of 2024 premiums and benefits BL Premium reports that the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) has softened its stance on medical schemes that have publicised planned products for 2024 ahead of the council’s approval. It acknowledged their need to communicate with consumers, but added that they must make it clear they were still waiting for sign-off. Last week the CMS sent letters to SA’s five biggest open medical schemes, instructing them to retract all communication about their planned premiums and benefits for 2024 because they had not yet been given the green light by the regulator. The move stunned the industry because for the past 25 years medical schemes have publicised their plans for the following year in September. The regulator appears to have targeted only five schemes – Discovery Health Medical Scheme (DHMS), Bonitas, Momentum, Bestmed and Medihelp – and turned a blind eye to smaller schemes that have also communicated their plans, such as Profmed and Camaf. Discovery Health CEO Ryan Noach said the approach taken by schemes was in line with the Medical Schemes Act’s requirements to communicate clearly with members. “Failure to communicate timeously could leave schemes in breach of their obligation to inform members; could leave financial advisers with inadequate time for analysis, technical engagement and advisory consultations; and could expose members to an unfair deadline to make their changes,” he said on Thursday. DHMS has filed an appeal against the directive contained in the letter it received. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Tamar Kahn at BusinessLive (subscriber access only). Read too, Regulator slams top SA medical schemes in battle over 2024 premium hikes, at Fin24 (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
Official went to work even when he was on leave to process illegal passports for undocumented immigrants TimesLIVE reports that a former home affairs employee who illegally processed passports for illegal immigrants was sentenced on Thursday to 10 years’ imprisonment. The Nelspruit Specialised Commercial Crimes Court earlier found Nhlanhla Mathebula, 39, who had been stationed in White River, guilty of 12 counts of corruption and 13 of contravening the Immigration Act. During May 2021, Mathebula illegally processed passport applications for illegal immigrants, swapping the pictures of South African citizens with those of foreigners. These applications were usually processed late at night and sometimes in the early hours. Mathebula even went to the office to process the applications when he was on leave. He was paid between R1,000 and R5,000 per application. The accused was arrested after one of his clients who wanted to be assisted with a fake passport confused him with a home affairs colleague. The court ordered the money Mathebula received as a gratification during the commission of the offences be recovered from his pension fund and transferred to the Criminal Assets Recovery Account. Read the full original of the report in the above regard at TimesLIVE Former Eskom employees among those targeted as Sars raids coal smuggling syndicate The Citizen reports that the SA Revenue Service (Sars) led a search and seizure operation across five provinces on Thursday in an attempt to bring down a coal-smuggling syndicate. The operation was launched after Sars received information of tax-related crimes in Gauteng, Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, the Free State and Limpopo. The suspects involved in the diversion of high-grade coal included former Eskom employees as well as local and foreign nationals. “Coal trucks destined for power stations are diverted to designated coal yards where high-grade coal is replaced with low-grade or sub-standard product. The high-grade coal is then exported or sold to willing buyers. The low-grade coal is often blended with scrap or other materials and then delivered to power stations,” said Sars. Low-grade coal has been blamed for damaging infrastructure at some of Eskom’s power stations, leading to more severe bouts of load shedding across the country. Sars also said the coal-smuggling syndicates had led to SA losing more than R500 million. No arrests have yet been made. Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Gareth Cotterell at The Citizen. Read too, Former Eskom employees targeted in SARS coal syndicate raids, at Fin24 (subscriber access only) Other internet posting(s) in this news category
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