Revised labour legislation: DA to lead the fight to amend the bills in Parliament

The Democratic Alliance (DA) will table amendments to the newly revised labour laws in Parliament and lead the fight to prevent labour legislation from contributing to unemployment in South Africa.

Cabinet's approval of redrafted versions of the Labour Relations Act and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act last week indicates that the Labour Minister has stood up to Cosatu's demand to ban labour broking. 

However, scrutiny of the proposals contained in the redrafted versions of the Acts reveals that significant problems remain.

In particular, the DA in Parliament will challenge the proposal that the Basic Conditions of Employment Act be amended to allow the Labour Minister to determine wages in sectors not covered by sectoral determination or a bargaining council centralised agreement. 

This proposal is deeply ironic considering that it comes in the same week that the British Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced a review of centralised national pay bargaining in the UK public sector. South Africa has an official unemployment rate three times higher than that of Britain, yet our government is moving to less flexibility in the labour market, even as their government is working out how to make their labour market more flexible.

Furthermore, we will oppose the proposal that the Labour Relations Act be amended to ban all temporary work in excess of six months. This means that once temporary workers serve out their six-month "temporary" period, employers will be forced to either hire them permanently, or retrench them. 

In this scenario, many temporary workers could lose their jobs, since employers often cannot afford all the costs that come with hiring a permanent employee. 

We welcome Cabinet's refusal to accede to Cosatu's demand that labour-broking be banned, as well as several commendable proposals in the bills that outlaw child labour, limit strike violence and strengthen the provision of essential services. These are steps in the right direction. However, key problems with the bills must be fixed during the Parliamentary process if we are to prevent an increase in the cost of employment and associated job losses. 

Statement issued by Tim Harris MP, DA Shadow Minister of Finance, March 25 2012

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