SADTU scores first victory in defence of collective bargaining

The South African Democratic Teachers Union (SADTU) has scored its first victory in the Labour Court today, Tuesday, 26 March 2013 against the decision of the Minister of Department of Basic Education and her Director-General Bobby Soobrayan to unilaterally withdraw Collective Agreement 1 of 2011 that would increase the tariffs for markers.

SADTU together with other unions in the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC) approached the Labour Court on 26 March, 2013 to have the termination of the Agreement declared unfair and unlawful after the Department failed to file their answering affidavit on time after the matter was set down for hearing on 13 March 2013.

The Labour Court has re-instated the collective agreement by giving fourteen days notice and the matter has been set for full trial on priority basis from 12 to 15 August, 2013.  The implication is that Collective Agreement 1 of 2011 remains in force pending the outcome of the trial at Labour Court as scheduled.

This is a victory worth celebrating as the Minister and her cronies failed once more to achieve their objective of undermining collective bargaining and reversing the gains of the working class and, in particular, the educators.  

We once more wish to thank our members for heeding our call to adopt the "Work to Rule" stance. We further wish to urge them to remain vigilant as ever and continue to defend collective bargaining gains.

We will continue to mobilise our members until the Minister and the Director General tender their resignations.

Statement issued by Mugwena Maluleke, SADTU General Secretary, March 26 2013

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