Nedlac: a clarion call to action by the leaders of government, business, labour and civil society

The National Labour and Economic Development Council (Nedlac) held its annual summit on Friday under the call of advancing solidarity, equality and sustainability in the economy and labour market.  

This is a clarion call to action by the leaders of government, business, labour and civil society.  Whilst we will naturally have different interests, mandates and objectives; there are core issues that we can and must agree on, which if we fail to resolve, will threaten the very fabric and stability of society.  

Given our history of three hundred and fifty years of colonial and apartheid rule that has left lasting scars of inequality and dispassion, we must be a society that values the principles of providing solidarity to those in need.

To be nation capable of growth and development, we must collectively work to eradicate the still prevalent divides of inequality all too often determined by the colour of one’s skin.  

In a global era of climate change where our ability to grow food or where we have seen communities washed away by floods, we must act to ensure that our economy is repurposed along a path of sustainability and in a manner that takes workers and communities with and does not abandon them on the alter of free market fundamentalism.

Ill-informed armchair critics lament that Nedlac is a place where policies go to die.  Yet nothing could be further from the truth.

It is at Nedlac where government, business and labour where able to craft our progressive labour laws that are today respected across the world, ensuring workers the right to form trade unions and to collective bargaining, to paid maternity leave and the right to work in a safe environment amongst many other hard won gains that have seen the working conditions and lives of millions of workers improve since the dark days of apartheid and have nurtured labour market stability key to economic growth.

It was at Nedlac under the leadership of then Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, that consensus was forged to introduce the National Minimum Wage that has raised the wages of 6 million farm, domestic, cleaning, construction, petrol, security, retail, hospitality and other vulnerable workers.

It has been at Nedlac that time again government, business, labour and community have been able to address complex matters and forge consensus from the Climate Change Act requiring government to act in defence of at risk workers and communities to the Eskom Social Compact relieving our electricity utility of R253 billion of its debt burden to enable it to focus its limited resources on ending the debilitating crisis of loadshedding through ramped up maintenance and infrastructure investments.

During Covid-19 government with social partners was able to put in place one of the world’s most successful health and safety campaigns partnered with an economic and social relief package, including releasing over R65 billion to help 5.7 million workers take care of their families.  This social compact helped save millions of lives and livelihoods.

Not all discussions are easy, some are brutal.  Labour was deeply angered by the initial proposed amendments to the labour laws tabled at Nedlac by government in 2022.  We feared they would see collapse of millions of workers’ hard-won rights and protections.  After extensive and often heated negotiations, we were able to tackle issues one by one and emerge with a package of reforms that will not only protect workers but also strengthen our labour laws, including through doubling severance pay, protecting the minimum wage from deductions, as well as  extending collective bargaining plus unemployment and compensation of occupational injuries and diseases insurance to atypical workers such as actors and eplatform drivers.

Over the past few months positive engagements have taken place on overhauling merchant shipping legislation to protect workers at sea; ensuring local industries and workers will be protected during trade negotiations be it with the United States, Africa or Asia; modernising the UIF and Compensation Fund to address employees and employers’ struggles to register and receive compensation, as well as the White Paper on Local Government seeking to stabilise and rebuild collapsing municipalities.

Whilst these engagements have secured many victories over the past 31 years of democracy, we dare not be complacent when the many challenges facing society and in particular, working-class communities, are so dire.  

The Nedlac collective must do more to ensure that the state is capacitated to fulfill its developmental mandate and deliver the quality public and municipal services that society and the economy depend upon.  More must be done to stimulate inclusive economic growth not only the state’s R1 trillion infrastructure programme but also through a drastically ramped up financial stimulus package for SMMEs, industrial and export sectors as well as through expanded public employment programmes helping millions to enter the labour market and find permanent jobs.  These cannot solely be funded by an overwhelmed fiscus.  The private sector must come to the party to help to unlock economic growth and tackle unemployment.

Nedlac is unique as South Africa’s statutory body in bringing together government, business, labour and community.  It has been one of the hallmarks of government led by the African National Congress to build an inclusive society and co-ownership of governance and working together to find solutions to our common problems.  It has helped nurture a sense of unity amongst organised labour and enabled a better understanding between government and social partners of our respective challenges.

Internationally social dialogues and compacts have helped build inclusive societies, developmental states and dynamic economies, in particular in Scandinavia.

The government, business, labour and society should not take Nedlac for granted.  When given the space and support it has shown itself time and again capable to building those social compacts needed to resolve our many and often insurmountable challenges. 

As Cosatu, we are determined to defend this important institution of advancing working class struggles and equally to ensure it responds decisively to the many challenges workers experience from the farms of Pongola to the informal settlements of Phillipi.

Cosatu General Secretary Solly Phetoe

*** The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of Independent Media or IOL.

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