Johannesburg -
Cosatu is about to ‘crash and burn’, analysts, academics and civil society activists have warned. The catastrophe emanating in the aftermath of a split in the federation would not spare anyone, especially millions of workers whose monthly contributions have built the giant trade union.
ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe said his party would do all in its power to save the federation, which is in alliance with the ruling party. “The impact of a split in Cosatu is going to be bigger than the split of Cope from the ANC. We said so at the beginning, precisely because Cosatu is a formation of working people,” he told an ANC gathering in KwaZulu-Natal.
Mantashe has hit the nail on the head as the ramifications of a split in Cosatu would not be along political lines but union affiliation in an already hostile environment.
The general secretary of the Textile Workers’ Union, André Kriel, expressed similar thinking in a Facebook post: “If the split proceeds, we will have years of warfare in our industries, while some in capital will smile and seek to take advantage. Surely we can do better.”
Political analysts Steven Friedman and Somadoda Fikeni told Independent News this week the split would lead to serious tensions on the shop floor, affecting productivity. They also cautioned it would fragment relations among workers.
More worrying is the fact that the Marikana tragedy remains a reference point in many minds when contemplating what could become of union rivalry when influenced by other deep workplace issues.
Absence of the camaraderie of belonging to one federation would create a “dog-eat-dog” situation.
The expulsion of Zwelinzima Vavi is said to have been the final nail in the coffin following the dismissal of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa (Numsa) from Cosatu last year.
Between the two that Cosatu rejects lies mass support in the form of Numsa’s 350 000-plus members and those unions in the federation that stood by Vavi’s side as he announced his plans at a media conference on Wednesday
Vavi said he envisaged one federation for all workers, a sentiment he shared with workers regularly while still at the helm of Cosatu.
“We face a massive crisis, and a huge challenge for the trade union movement. Our central executive committee (CEC) has met and adopted a bold programme to defend jobs and defend our unions, in particular the National Union of Mineworkers.
“We will do everything possible to defend our principle of ‘One Country – One Federation’ and ‘One Sector – One Union’, and prevent any further fragmentation,” he told delegates at the congress of banking union Sasbo in 2012, shortly after the Marikana tragedy and during the worst period of the NUM’s internal implosion. However the other players in the labour trade union movement whom Vavi has been courting publicly may not be interested in his advances.
“We are opposed to the formation of another federation. One would try to persuade those who are disgruntled with Cosatu to come to Nactu. Obviously Nactu has principles. It has always been part of the liberation movement in the country, working for worker unity but a principled unity,” said National Council of Trade Unions’ general secretary, Narius Moloto.
He added: “We don’t want unity for the sake of unity or unity that will not be sustainable.
“We therefore call upon those who need a home in terms of a federation, to come to Nactu, including Vavi, because he cannot be allowed to just hang on in no man’s land. That would not be desirable.”
South Africa has 23 registered trade-union federations, according the Department of Labour’s latest figures. The organisations which vary from some well-known names to the least recognisable, such as the Movement for Social Justice, are all vying for the support of a very small pool of unionised workers. By the end of 2014, union membership was reported to have fallen 9 percent from just less than 3.3 million to 3 million. Of that, Cosatu claims some 1.8 million workers.
And this figure likely explains why anyone who is looking at leading a massive federation of workers would be eyeing a Cosatu takeover as well.
Unionists have failed to attract the millions of workers who remain unorganised. The Federation of Trade Unions of South Africa (Fedusa) with 410 000 members said it was also not sold on the idea of a ‘super federation’ or workers’ movement as punted by Vavi.
“We do know at this stage that we are not very keen to join a new federation. If we are approached, we will consider it within our structures and make a decision. Our members will give us a mandate in this regard,” said Fedusa president Koos Bezuidenhout.
He also stressed the ideological restrictions on their part. “It’s not in our business to participate in any religious or political organisations. We do not subscribe to anything that expresses political views (or) reacts to political party statements. We are not in the business of joining any socialistic, communistic, far right or far left organisations.”
Sunday Independent