Keeping democracy on the straight and narrow through social dialogue - Cosatu

DEMOCRACIES are sites of contestation.

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It is important to engage in debate anchored upon facts, honesty and respect for institutions of social dialogue.

Cosatu has been dismayed by the explosion of fake news over the past few years. Of late we have seen this addiction to peddling hysteria expand to the Nedlac labour laws reforms negotiations. It is important to reassure workers that their hard-won rights, guaranteed by the Constitution and set in law, will continue to remain intact.

Covid-19 highlighted numerous gaps in our labour laws, from 4 million informal workers falling outside the social security net, to actors and artists lacking collective bargaining protection.

The Department of Employment and Labour with Business and Labour at Nedlac agreed to an open discussion on our labour laws with all parties allowed to table proposed amendments.

Cosatu was deeply concerned by government and business’ initial proposals which we felt would seriously erode the protections in law that took decades of struggles to achieve. We were disappointed that labour’s proposals were disregarded.

The Federation chose to continue to engage, to prevent a rush to table Bills at Parliament and to battle on at Nedlac to not only block such proposed weakening of our labour laws but to put in place amendments to address many gaps that workers have experienced from our factories to our farms.

Negotiations require strategic acumen, tactical agility and a level of compromise. Most importantly they require you to pitch at the negotiating table. Pity parties at home with friends win nothing.

Cosatu is pleased that despite an initial set of proposals that have would gutted our labour laws, we managed not only to block amendments that would have set workers back but to score major victories that labour campaigned for over many years.