Independent Newspapers

Zwelinzima Vavi general secretary of Cosatu. Picture: Antoine de Ras.

Job creation must be at the centre of governments' macro-economic policies, Congress of SA Trade Unions general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said on Wednesday.

“We are arguing that another bout of recession must not be at the expense of the working class and the poor,” Vavi said at a meeting with French President Nicholas Sarkozy in Cannes ahead of the G20 Summit.

He said - according to a Cosatu statement - the working class was worried that many countries had adopted austerity measures that only deepened inequalities, poverty and unemployment.

The G20 Summit was simply used by governments to justify why they were not shifting policies.

“They (emerging markets and developing countries) continue to refuse to change. We appeal that government must target employment creation, poverty reduction and elimination of inequalities within and between nations of the world.”

Vavi urged the G20 to consider promoting job creation in the manufacturing and agriculture sectors.

“Without promoting active industrial development... we do not see any prospects of fighting unemployment and defeating poverty and inequalities in these (developing) countries.”

Vavi also proposed that financial market transactions should be taxed.

This would discourage excessive speculation and limit disruptions on the productive economy brought by the financial markets.

“In this context, we propose that the G20 considers the implementation of a tax on short-term cross-border flows, to limit excessive appreciation of currencies, especially in developing countries,” said Vavi. - Sapa