The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) stands firmly behind its affiliate, Tirisano Transport and Services Union (TASWU), in their current strike action at Grindrod Logistics Ltd, protesting against unjust retrenchments and dismissals affecting over 85 workers.
Grindrod Logistics Ltd is behaving capitalistically in line with the pattern of de-industrialization of retrenching its workers while increasing the use of subcontractors and labour brokers. This move is aimed at reducing permanent positions within the company and casualising. Having uncovered this casualisation pattern, TASWU has decided to resist.
Despite claims of financial hardship, Grindrod reported a significant 16% increase in profits during the 2023 financial year compared to the previous year. The bid to retrench workers and casualise its workforce is motivated by the profiteering motive, not because the business is struggling. Retrenchments are mostly considered when companies want to maximise their profits, and casualisation is the instrument that companies use to retain the quantity of labour without having to pay the requisite amount for that labour. By casualising, Grindrod reduces variable costs of labour for profit motives.
SAFTU joins TASWU in calling upon Grindrod Logistics Ltd to immediately reinstate all unfairly dismissed workers and cease further retrenchments. Workers facing job losses must be allowed to return to their positions without delay.
Furthermore, SAFTU rejects retrenchments because they are tools in the arsenal of the capitalist enterprises to maximise profits at the expense of workers. In the same breadth, we are opposed to the casualisation of workers as this process throws them into a precarious position where they have no security of tenure on employment and are often victims of employers who restrict their right to association. The ILO report on Non-Standard work has shown that casual work has been on the rise. Casual work or Non-standard work is problematic in numerous ways, prime amongst which is the contribution to the decline in wage levels, security of employment and hampering the right to association.
