SAFTU MARKS ITS 7TH ANNIVERSARY

Today marks 7 years since the historic congress that launched the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU). On 21 April 2017, 1500 delegates representing different trade unions from the private and public sectors congregated in Boksburg to inaugurate SAFTU.

The launching congress adopted a set of principles that define the character of SAFTU. These principles included that the federation must be independent but not apolitical, be worker-controlled and democratic, espouse non-racialism and non-sexism, be internationalist and anti-imperialist in its world outlook, ensure militancy in fighting for the working class and the poor and build/show solidarity with all workers. Underwriting all other principles and ensuring that the federation successfully lived up to its ideals, was a principle of building effective organization and representation.

SAFTU’s birth marked the most important milestone in South Africa’s labor movement given the subjective weaknesses of the labour federations at the time. The diametric contradictions in the tripartite alliance have and continue to compromise the Congress of the South African Trade Unions (COSATU)’s ability and capacity to legitimately represent workers. For instance, it is a mockery that they are fighting against privatisation, fiscal austerity, monetary austerity and other capital-centered policies, whilst the organisational leader of the tripartite alliance, the ANC, is the engineer of these policies. This not only strips them of the legitimacy to advocate on these issues but compromises the advocacy itself.

The economic conditions had also grown difficult demonstrated by high unemployment, inequality and poverty. This situation was not helped by the labour movement which grew closely with employers even in the private sector. Under the burden of these economic conditions, combined with a feeling of resentment against the trade union bureaucracy which was considered compromised by its growing closer to employers in both the private and public sectors, rapture began to set in all trade unions of COSATU mainly. The rebellion of the mineworkers against their union, the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), which subsequently resulted in the formation of the mineworkers’ committees across different shafts in the Platinum Belt, marks a periodic peak of this contradiction. It was a culmination of resentment into rebellion.

SAFTU was given birth by these contradictions in the main. It was established to provide an alternative and a fighting organ for the working class. To ally with working-class formations and fight uncompromisingly. Challenges have hindered the federation from living up to its founding principles, particularly that of being an organ of militant and mass struggles.

Despite the challenges, SAFTU has strived to be a campaigning trade union federation. In 2018, we led a historic campaign against the amendments proposed to the Labour Relations Act which attacked the right to strike. Disappointingly, the federations in NEDLAC had agreed with the employers and liberal economists when they said trade unions have disproportionate power in the labour market. Thus, they approved the proposed amendments which sought to reduce these so-called “disproportionate powers” of the trade unions by attacking the right to strike.

Subsequently, SAFTU has led campaigns against loadshedding, fiscal and monetary austerity, unbundling of Eskom and privatisation of energy provision, privatisation of South African Airways (SAA), unemployment, retrenchments, and the freezing of vacant posts in the public service.

As we commemorate SAFTU’s birthday today, it is important to also recognise the contributions of the federation to the empowerment of workers through train-the-trainer programmes, strengthening their voices, and uplifting their public profile through our communication programmes. Through NUMSA’s education desk, we were able to establish an academic learning programme called Higher Certificate In Economic Development in partnership with the University of Western Cape (UWC) and Wholesale & Retail SETA.

SAFTU continues to play a crucial role in championing the rights of workers, fighting against injustices in the workplace and advancing the socio-economic interests of workers through policy advocacy. Today serves as a reminder of the ongoing struggle for dignity, equality, and justice for all workers in South Africa, which we believe will truly be achieved with the abolishment of capitalism.

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