At a recent evaluation of Labour Bulletin by unionists, we asked if the working class movement needed SALB at this time. “More than ever,” participants responded. As Eddie Webster who writes a moving tribute to the Bulletin commented to the editor, “With so many people and organisations getting corrupted, I am struck how the Bulletin has stayed the course.”
Webster believes SALB plays multiple roles: mirror, critic, provider of information and as an interlocutor between labour action and labour analysis. He concludes that its “best contribution to the challenges facing labour in the era of globalisation is to reassert its role as a key interlocutor and compass. Its most recent edition [31.3] is a model of how it can play an interlocutory role.” It is the value of SALB that is underscored by Martin Jansen’s piece on the lack of alternative media since the demise of many publications post-1994.

He castigates the left for not using the media and the ideological space it opens declaring that, “Alternative popular media which promote the values of labour solidarity, social and economic equality and democratic practice is now more possible than ever before.” This edition continues with reflections on the June public service strike which is the largest strike in South African history – estimates put it at 14.4 million lost days. The largest strike before this was the 1987 miners’ strike with 7 million days lost. After the drama of the strike few people know the details of what was finally agreed. Ebrahim-Khalil Hassen gives an overview and concludes that the agreement provides opportunities to address service delivery.

Three interviews from different perspectives on the strike with the general secretary of the Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council, chief negotiator for the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu), and the CEO of the metal/engineering bargaining council provide pointers on what to avoid in future, on mistakes made and on possible restructuring of the bargaining process. Such reflection is of value to all sides especially as the Bargaining Council is likely to undergo a strike review process. At the evaluation of SALB people commented on the absence of health and safety articles and asked for more pieces on casual work. In response we carry a damning article on the City of Cape Town’s health and safety practices in particular its neglect of labour broker contract workers. A study conducted by Samwu (SA Municipal Workers Union) and other organisations uncovers how contract workers (19% of the workforce) fall through the cracks.

Neither the broker nor the municipality take responsibility for these workers who operate in a dangerous environment. This has also eroded the rights of other temporary and permanent workers. The September Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) Central Committee, discussed what constituted good leadership and ideas around developing an Alliance Pact with the ANC as well as adopting a list of preferred candidates for election at the ANC’s December conference. Dinga Sikwebu looks at this strategy in the light of the ANC’s June policy conference and argues with some force that Cosatu has been over optimistic in seeing shifts in ANC policies and approaches and that it is misreading the situation. In the last Bulletin we examined how the collapse of the Zimbabwean economy has weakened the labour movement. In this edition we asked two Zimbabwean analysts to speculate on prospects for the country’s reconstruction.

Lloyd Sachikonye gives pointers for what could assist in its rebuilding while Brian Raftopoulos more pessimistically sees the way forward as “strewn with unpleasant compromises that are likely to set the paramaters for the next round of struggles… A central part… will be for the Zimbabwean political opposition to re-organise… Both tasks will be extremely difficult…” Jurgen Schadeberg’s grim photos of inner city residents under threat of eviction is offset by a recent victory in the Constitutional Court where the Johannesburg municipality conceded that inhabitants of “bad” buildings can no longer be evicted unless it provides alternative accommodation or assists in upgrading buildings.

Also an interview with Lebo Mashile celebrates a young, talented award winning South African poet A final comment. Participants in the evaluation requested more readership say in Bulletin’s content. Here’s your chance. Send us ideas and also any queries you want answered in our “Unlocking Labour Laws” section (contact details on next page)..

Kally Forrest (Editor)