labour analysis
ANALYSIS: Why unions are squabbling and squandering
SA’s labour movement is fragmented and beset with bitter internal battles, a marked lack of co-operation and financial and administrative woes. For many unions, meeting their obligation to represent worker interests seems to be a low priority
18 August 2022 - 05:00
The more things change, the more they stay the same. It’s a tired, overused aphorism, to be sure — but in both substance and form, it epitomises the state of SA’s trade unions.
If the raison d’être of a trade union is to represent workers’ interests, many in SA have failed dismally. Given the high levels of inequality and poverty in the country, a modern, united labour movement could play an important role. Instead, unions are mostly in the news for their ugly spats, internal divisions and run-ins with the law. ..
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