COSATU's expectations from State of the National address
The Congress of South African Trade Unions is looking forward to President Jacob Zuma's third State of the Nation Address on Thursday evening, 10 February 2011. We congratulate him and his government for their achievements so far, despite coming to office in the middle of a global economic crisis
The federation expects the president to continue to implement the priorities outlined in the ANC election manifesto, which were aimed at achieving major reforms and improvements in the following areas:
- Creation of decent work and sustainable livelihoods
- Education
- Health
- Rural development, food security and land reform
- The fight against crime and corruption.
After two years in office it is essential that the speech should contain concrete plans to translate these commitments into real changes on the ground.
a) On creation of decent work and sustainable livelihoods.
Last year we urged the President to pay particular attention to policies to reverse the catastrophic loss of 959 000 jobs in the first 9 months of 2009. In fact jobs continued to disappear, bring the total loss since the start of 2009 until the last quarter of 2010 to 1.17 million.
Job creation must therefore remain the number one priority in the President's speech, as it was at the ANC and government lekgotlas. We have welcomed the publication of the New Growth Path document and hope that the government has noted COSATU's response and that the speech will take on board the improvements to the policy we are recommending.
In particular we expect the President to announce a radical shift in the government's and Reserve Bank's hitherto conservative fiscal and monetary policy, to bring it in line with ANC policy to promote manufacturing industry and job creation, rather than its rigid obsession with inflation-targeting.
After a public debate and amending the document on the lines COSATU has suggested, we urge the government to begin to implement it as quickly as possible and start to bring down our intolerable levels of unemployment.
COSATU also hope that Comrade Zuma will quash rumours that the government is moving away from the clear ANC policy for decent work. We want to hear how the government is going to implement the 2009 manifest commitment to "avoid exploitation of workers and ensure decent work for all workers as well as to protect the employment relationship, introduce laws to regulate contract work, subcontracting and out-sourcing, address the problem of labour broking and prohibit certain abusive practices."
We therefore expect him to clarify his plans to strengthen the labour laws so that workers are better protected from exploitation, poverty pay, unfair dismissal, and are able to work in a safe and healthy environment.
We shall be particularly keen to hear a clear commitment that the government is going to put an end to the accelerating casualisation of employment, which is leading to thousands of relatively well-paid and secure jobs being replaced by low-paid, insecure jobs, with little or no benefits.
A report from the Adcorp Employment Index revealed that while jobs overall had declined by an annualised 2,41% by November 2010, the number of permanent workers decreased most, by 2,74%, while the number of temporary workers decreased by only 1,60%. Meanwhile the number of ‘agency' workers (i.e. those employed by labour brokers) increased by 5.59%.
The survey shows that there are nearly 100 000 more labour broker workers than previously estimated. They now represent 6.8% of total employment and 23.2% of the country's temporary and part-time workforce. This is having a devastating negative effect on the levels of pay, job security and benefits for thousands of workers.
[COSATU has noted the dispute between Adcorp and StatsSA, over the accuracy of their statistics, and is fully aware that Adcorp has a vested interest in labour broking and that its figures therefore have to be treated with caution, but in this case its statistics are in line with COSATU's own experience.]
We hope to hear a categorical assurance that the human-trafficking of workers in the form of labour broking, and all other forms of super-exploitation, which have no role to play in a decent-work economy, will be banned.
The federation looks forward to the President rejecting the idea of a youth employment subsidy, which will lead to a further erosion of wages and conditions and mass retrenchments of workers once they reach the age limit for the subsidy.
b) On education
COSATU is sure that the President will congratulate the country on the improved matric pass rate but hope that this will not lead to any complacency. The public education system is still facing serious problems, with far too many schools under-funded and under-staffed. We look forward to further advances towards the goal of free and compulsory education for all South African children.
We expect a strong commitment to improve the quality and availability of further and higher education, so that we can produce the skilled and qualified workers which we will need if we are to meet our job-creation targets.
Once again the federation hopes the President will support the commitment made by SADTU and other teachers' unions to campaign to reverse the culture in the education service and to ensure that the commitment already made - that teachers must be at school at all times, teaching, and not abusing the learners, in particular the girl children - is taken forward.
COSATU looks forward to the rapid implementation of the commitment in the ANC 8th January 2011 statement that "In line with the vision of the Freedom Charter, and the resolution of our 52nd National Conference, we are committed to progressively introduce free education up to undergraduate level.
"With effect from this year, 2011, students who are registered at a public university in their final year of study and who qualify for funding from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, will receive a loan equivalent to the full cost of study, which is the full fee and the necessary living expenses. "If these students graduate at the end of the year, the loan for the final year will be converted to a full bursary. They will not have to repay the amount."
The federation also hopes to see the construction of the two universities in the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga. Not only will this open up more opportunities for higher education for the youth of those provinces; it could also create around 20 000 much needed jobs.
c) On health care
The federation will be looking for an assurance that the government's National Health Insurance scheme is on track and would like to hear dates for its implementation, in line with the ANC National Declaration of September 2010, which noted "the overwhelming support for the National Health Insurance and that the implementation of NHI should be fast-tracked.
We also want urgent measures to tackle the deplorable levels of service throughout our public health service and in particular an assurance that all vacant posts be filled as quickly as possible.
d) Rural development, food security and land reform
The recent floods have highlighted the potential threat to food security. This makes it more vital that the President commits the government to speed up land reform and implement measures to assist the new farm owners to use their land productively, which can expand employment and produce food.
COSATU looks forward to the release of the green paper on rural development and land affairs, which is reported to stress "reducing joblessness among the youth and supporting labour-intensive industries through industrial policy interventions."
e) The fight against crime and corruption
COSATU has welcomed the small reduction in crime and the initiatives taken by several ministers to step up the battle against corruption. This is in line with ANC policy to "ensure efficient functioning of all anti-corruption structures and systems including whistle-blowing, blacklisting of corrupt companies, implementation of laws to ensure exposure of, and action against, private sector corruption, and quicker processes to deal with any corrupt civil servants and public officials".
The latest allegations against construction companies is a warning that we still have a long way to go to rid the country of the cancer of corruption, price-fixing and tender abuse and we expect the President to reassure the nation that we are not going to drop our guard in the battle against crime and corruption.
COSATU reiterates its view that all public representatives must be forced to choose whether they are servants of the public or in business to make profits. They cannot be both at the same time.
f) Local government elections
Finally, as we approach local government elections, COSATU expects the president to spell out plans to improve service delivery, particularly to our poorest communities. Far too many township, rural villages and informal settlement still lack sanitation, running water, electricity, tarred roads, etc. We have millions of unemployed workers, yet at the same time thousands of communities which still lack the basic amenities for a decent life.
The president must assure us that there will be no more scandals of provincial and local governments not even being able to spend the money allocated in their budgets for service delivery, and that more money will be available to employ more workers to improve the lives of our people
Statement issued by Congress of South African Trade Unions, February 7 2011
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