LABOUR
THETO MAHLAKOANA: It’s about time unions put workers first
It is time for the South African trade union movement to awake from its slumbers because workers cannot keep on sounding the alarm in vain. Empowered with the sole responsibility of ensuring workers are protected from exploitation and other forms of abuse, unions are uniquely placed to influence conditions of work for millions of employees. Granted, about 70% of workers in SA have shunned the unions, but those who sign up for membership and commit a portion of their salaries to their organisations on a monthly basis do so out of the need for protection. However, the unions are not coming to the party. Appropriate interventions are not media statements lamenting the state of affairs, nor hurling insults at bosses while leading marches. What workers need in the face of intransigent employers are boots on the ground, willing to act on the Labour Relations Act, Basic Conditions of Employment Act and other progressive worker protection legislation. These laws exist because it has long be...
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