Tuesday, June 04, 2013

South Africa's Department of Labor Engages Workers and Bosses

Labour dept's 'kumbaya' meeting shows inconsistency, say experts

Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant's heart is in the right place, but her attempts to engage with mines' employees and unions could be misplaced.

03 Jun 2013 15:17 Sarah Evans
South African Mail & Guardian

In a step towards assisting the falling rand, Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant on Monday announced she would meet mining unions and their federations ahead of the bargaining season in the sector. But experts are undecided over whether this is a good idea.

Oliphant's spokesperson Musa Zondi told the South African Press Association on Monday the meeting was part of the tasks President Jacob Zuma assigned to various Cabinet ministers to deal with labour relations in the mining sector.

But labour law expert Tony Healy said on Monday the jury was still out on how prudent a move it was to hold talks with labour, adding that employers needed to be involved.

On the one hand, he said, it was encouraging to see the minister engaging with labour, especially against the backdrop of labour unrest in the mining sector which impacts on micro- and-macro-economic issues. However, it would have been better to hold trilateral talks with mining bosses included to address issues such as mistrust in the sector.

He said the industry wanted to believe that Oliphant's moves are well-intended. "But at the end of the day she [Oliphant] has a divided labour grouping who doesn't only have major issues with mine owners but also issues with each other ... The [National Union of Mineworkers] is aligned with Cosatu and the ANC, who is ultimately the minister's employer. So from [the Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union] side, there has to be a huge sense of suspicion around the minister's motive."

Labour relations in the mining sector have taken centre stage since the killing of 44 people at Lonmin's Marikana mine last year. Tensions between rival unions the NUM and Amcu have intensified in the platinum sector, leading to strikes.

Healy added that believability on the part of the minister was especially important on the back of "partisan comments" made by Minerals Resources Minister Susan Shabangu at the NUM's recent conference.

"And done no matter how well-intended it [Monday's meeting] may be, there's a degree of inconsistency when the minerals minister said what she said, and the labour minister organises a 'kumbaya' meeting with labour ... If there was a genuine concern about what could go on in the wage negotiations, the time could have been better spent in trilateral meetings. Perhaps a memorandum of understanding could have been signed that would ensure stability during the wage negotiations."

Tense rivalry

Healy added that "the worst is yet to come" with regards to the rivalry between unions NUM and Amcu. And it was dangerous for the ANC to be seen to be "cosying up" to one social partner while excluding the other. Doing this would do more harm than good, despite the minister's intentions, he said.

Jonathan Goldberg, chief executive at Global Business Solutions, agreed with the sentiment that business must not be excluded from the talks. He said Oliphant needed to ensure the sector that government was committed to playing an impartial, third party role, whose interests were about what was best for the economy.

Therefore, Oliphant needed to arrange meetings with mining bosses, too. He said initial wage demands from unions, 60% increases in the mining sector and 20% in the metals sector, would result in further retrenchments and further weakening of the rand.

"This ultimately affects the poor as a weakened rand means higher fuel and food prices."

He said Oliphant needed to send a message to labour that their differences needed to be set aside "for the greater good of the economy". Unions and employers needed to agree to seek third party arbitration in the event that wage talks deadlock, instead of moving for strike action.

"If I were Oliphant, Id' be trying to find a platform for quick solutions to wage deadlocks. We need to put aside our differences and look for solutions that are palatable to the economy," Goldberg said. –

Additional reporting by Sapa

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