May 1 marks International Workers’ Day, or May Day as we have come to know it.
Twenty-seven years into democracy, the struggles of the working class have yet to end.
The hope that many South Africans held on to post ’94 – for an equal society in which all can work and live – seems elusive now more than ever as unemployment figures rocket.
The unemployment of almost 8 million people leaves one wondering if the policies presented by the ANC to eradicate joblessness are worth their salt? Over the last two decades, the ANC has seemingly battled to introduce a sustainable model to create jobs.
For instance, at his first State of the Nation Address in 1994, then president Nelson Mandela shared his government’s vision, saying: “A campaign will be launched at every level of government. A Public Works programme (has been) designed and all efforts made to involve the private sector, organised labour, the civics and other community organisations to rebuild our townships, restore services in rural areas while addressing the issue of job creation and training, especially for our unemployed youth.”
In 1999, his successor, then president Thabo Mbeki, undertook that his administration would accelerate the Growth, Employment and Redistribution Programme in order to achieve socio-economic transformation.
In 2013, then president Jacob Zuma acknowledged the unemployment plight faced by the country’s youth. He indicated that the government had “developed several sectoral strategies especially focusing on skills development to meet these challenges”.
Enter Cyril Ramaphosa, and yet again the ANC, in 2019, said it was charting a pathway to create 2 million jobs over the next two decades.
It is disheartening that since the inception of democracy, the ANC has been talking about aiding the workforce but has not made any significant strides. Exacerbating matters is the fact that the unions have lost their steam. Most have forgotten their core fundamentals and the roles they were established for.
It seems that going forward, organised labour and the government will need to make urgent changes to avert a jobs bloodbath over the next few years.
The Star