Discussion | SA commemorates Workers' Day

Added: 2026-05-07

[00:00:00]Now workers day which is also known as Mayday is a public holiday that's celebrated globally today to honor the contributions of workers and also to continue advocating for labor rights in South Africa. This day also carries deep historical significance commemorating the role of trade unions and the working class in the struggle against apartate.

[00:00:23]Now to discuss the significance of this day, we're joined by the South African Federation of Trade Union spokesperson Newton Masugu who joins us virtually.

[00:00:32]And in studio with me, the general secretary of the Federation of Unions of South Africa, that's Fedus Arifta Ajam.

[00:00:41]Thanks so much to both of you for joining us. Let me just start by taking a look at the significance of workers day in 2026 especially against a backdrop of depressed you know economic activity and worker struggles. So in 2026 how much of that struggle still needs to be completed? Newton let me start with you.

[00:01:06]>> Well um a lot still has to be completed indeed. uh first of all I mean the the the the democrat democratic rights that we enjoy in this country came at the back of immense struggles on the part of workers themselves. Uh but in addition to that is that all the rights that we enjoy today um I mean protected by pieces of legislation the labor relations act the basic conditions of employment act like occupational health and safety and so on were not conferred to the workers. It was not a favor confer. They came again at the back of the struggles that workers had to wage in demand of those rights. But um I mean as um I mean as in 31 years into into the democratic dispensation I there seems to be a serious problem on the part of workers. I mean they are experiencing all manner of things. chief amongst which being unemployment which has a direct bearing not only on those who are who lose their jobs but also those who are still in employment because as you would know I mean unemployment threatens the employed precisely because it and it it makes them to compete with the unemployed and thereby drive down not only their wages but also their livelihood but also the their attempts of course to cl that those particular rights as demonstrated by an attempt to amend the labor laws which we take serious issue issue with but also crumbling infrastructure which make makes it very very difficult for workers to socially reproduce themselves. You have the problems in health, education in policing and all of that and these are essential services that workers depend on on to reproduce themselves. So, so indeed on the one hand indeed there there are there are struggles that have been worn by workers, massive gains on the part of workers themselves but also there seems to be a a a reversal of those particular gains as a result indeed of amongst other things the mismanagement of the economy and the country.

[00:02:58]>> Rifa, how much of that struggle still remains?

[00:03:02]That's uh that's a very interesting question that you ask because the struggle indeed continues as we in the trade union movement would always say aluta continueer and what is important to understand is that the struggles that workers are enduring now is quite different to the ones that we have seen traditionally pre uh uh during the heydays of aparate. So whilst workers remain the backbone of the society of South Africa, they keep services running in particular public services that Newton has alluded to. But the struggle is a little bit different now. It is all about being able to access job security.

[00:03:43]It is being able to engage in an era where words such as casualization, outsourcing, exploitation has become the order of the day. The story is the same whether it is in the public services or in the private sector. You have to do more. You have to endure more but you have to accept less when we clearly understand that the cost of living continues to rise. But the reality for workers is that the salaries and the take-home pay does not increase at the same pace that inflation does. So these challenges persist. And if it is not on days such as workers day, we cannot commemorate nor celebrate the hard one victories that have been there. So on days like today, we have to push back.

[00:04:33]We have to conscientize and we have to educate our members about the realities that they face on a daily basis. So the struggle is real. So, so speaking of if we think of the youth of 2026 and the significance of workers day, do you think that as a trade union federations you have done enough to consentize the youth about the significance of this day? Because for many young people, a lot of them unfortunately have perhaps never even had a job, but they see this day as just another public holiday. So, do you think that enough is being done?

[00:05:10]Sakina if you're directing the question to me to both of you first. Let me go first then.

[00:05:16]>> The young workers are the future generations of South Africa and if we do not continue to do what we are doing as unions, they will never understand the realities that we are faced with currently and what they potentially will be faced with. When we look at for example the decent work agenda, when we take a look at the future of work and when we take a look at issues such as um automation, innovation and artificial intelligence, it is about unions playing a leading role in terms of educating and advocating for empowerment of workers, for ensuring that workers are not left at the margins of society, but that lifelong learning continues to be embedded in the collective bargaining agreements that workers continue to do.

[00:06:06]So even though young workers do not necessarily see trade unions as being sexy enough um if I can use that that concept but what we are continuously advancing on is to say the dangers are out there because the benefits that we are enjoying now such as social security such as job security are concepts that would be foreign to them if they are not part of this revolutionary movement that we continue to embrace and safeguard And the the key message that we say to the youth be part of this revolution because the bus has already left the station.

[00:06:44]Although we are in a information-led era, they need to understand that professor Google is not your salvation.

[00:06:54]Professor Google will not help you when you have to go to a disciplinary hearing. So the technology is there to play a supportive role not to replace uh workers and young workers in particular.

[00:07:08]So they have to embrace the concept of an injury to one is an injury to all for ultimately when you erode what workers have achieved the hard one gains. We cannot sacrifice that and place workers at the altar of uh sacrifice at all given stages. So it's a continuous fight and it is about the collective impact that we are making on the basis of credibility number one but ultimately on the basis of unity >> Newton your take on that because as Riva says for some other reason young people may not be gravitating towards unions for whatever reasons they may have as Rita says they may not find it sexy enough. Have the unions themselves been agile enough to adapt to a younger workforce that comes from a totally different disposition than I suppose um older workers come from. So how do you see that particular issue?

[00:08:11]>> Well, I mean the unions themselves are encountering a number of problems just as a starting point and the first one is the union density itself. I mean about 76% of the workers are ununized. That's point number one. But point number two, they are confronting the problem of unemployment. 42% of of of of the labor force of the those who are capable of working are unemployed. 62% of whom are the youth by the way. And you have that particular problem. And then we have the problem that came I mean with with neoliberalism, the casualization of labor, putting workers under precarious work and and so on and so forth. those um make it difficult for for workers to be to be unionized because I mean they they are always on the precipice of losing their jobs and and therefore it creates that particular problem. The third problem is the one that rift made mention of the question of mechanization robotization and artificial intelligence which has a tendency of course of displacing lab. So, so the unions on the one hand are confronted with that particular problem which of course we always try to come together under the opices of NLE the four federation to to come up with ways indeed to to conscientize the young and to make make them aware of the importance of of being members of the unions but also to to indeed expand our trade union density to be able to to reach much more workers and therefore to defend their rights as a result of that.

[00:09:35]So there are a number of of factors that contribute to what may may seem to be or what is indeed um the um a reversal uh on on the part of the gains that unions have made but also their inability to to reach into into into the fold of the young. But indeed the it is true that somewhat the young do see see this day as merely a holiday and that lies on the shoulders of the trade union movement itself to make them aware that uh where they must take this day serious and the the significance of this day as as it relates to the labor rights and indeed the the the democratic rights that are experiencing this country >> and of course we're talking about the significance of Mayday and uh we are in conversation with as we've been throughout the morning speaking to Katleon who's out in Puluane where Kasatu will be holding uh their Mayday celebrations. We checked in with Tabang Laruta earlier on and she was of course in Marana where Aku will be and of course the political parties themselves will be holding several rallies on Mayday that's today. But what does it mean for South Africans in 2026? Have the union uh movement been able to sustain the importance and significance of this day? We're also asking you that question uh to weigh in and tell us what you make of all of this. Now just coming back to the significance of this day and how union and union federations are viewed. Uh do you think in terms of the scandals that plague unions themselves where there's talk about uh misappropriation of funds where we've seen some union leaders get uh wealthy and the workers continue to suffer. What sort of picture does that paint and and and why would people then gravitate towards unions if they see those sorts of events? believed.

[00:11:37]>> You know, Sakina, it's always a challenge in South Africa when the good news that we hold on to dearly does not sell at the rate and the pace that bad news does. Uh there's always this gravitation towards jumping into the deep end and making sure that South Africans understand what the negativity is that surrounds these issues. But when it comes to trade unions and federations and I'm only at liberty to speak on behalf of Fedusa at this stage, it is about consequence management. It is about the responsibility and the accountability that sets the tone and sets the culture within which we organize and operate.

[00:12:26]There are codes that bind us at the same time on how we organize and how we operate because ultimately it is a travesty when we call out government and other parties but we are failing to take introspec and whip our own when it comes to these issues. So trade unions most certainly are not immune to these kinds of diseases and cancers that are out there. Corruption is the order of the day. But I can say to you without fear, favor or contradiction that from within the Fedusa stable, we have always prided ourselves as being accountable and where we have to call out our own leaders. We have not been shy to do exactly that.

[00:13:10]But it is about ensuring that you nip matters in the bud immediately and you create that culture that sustains the organization for the very reason that we continuously advance issues such as accountability number one good governance number two because if we demonstrate that we can only ensure that those who are sitting on the outside will be more attracted to resonate towards trade unions. So at the end of the day, it is up to us to demonstrate that and uh our stats will show that in collaboration and in synergy with that of our affiliated unions, we we rise to the occasion and we deal with matters headon. Unfortunately, there have not been too many or any scandals as such that have been droing us from our side because we are about meritocracy. We are about governance. We are about accountability. And at the end of the day, if you want competence, you need to be able to move and constantly take introspect in terms of what good governance ultimately means. Not just in a corporate world, but ultimately to to ensure the long-term sustainability of the institutions and in this instance, FedEus.

[00:14:33]>> Newton.

[00:14:36]Well, firstly the trade unions belong belong to workers themselves. Uh it is workers who elect leaders into positions of power within the trade union movement and it is workers who through their structures are supposed to hold trade union leaders to account. Now that is the structure of the trade union at least on the part of safu itself and in its and its affiliate. But you see the point I've made reference to earlier on that that um through labor precarity uh through unemployment through the lack of confidence therefore on the part of workers themselves there's been a metamorphosis that has occurred in the trade union movement such that workers now begin to view the trade union as merely a labor I mean as a as a lawfare in other words they no longer have an interest as a result of course of the applicity as a result of long working hours as a result of unstable working conditions. They've begun to see the trade union movement to which they belong as merely a a law firm which they pay and they will call on it whenever they need they need services to be to be to be rendered to themselves during that particular time. And and that therefore opens the door for all manner of of swindlers to enter and therefore to to to enrich themselves at the expense of workers monies and at the expense of workers organizations themselves. And therefore the the the accountability mechanisms are such that they are undermined by that lack of of of of intervention on the part of the owners of the of the union themselves, namely the workers to hold their leaders accountable. And therefore it has opened the door for all manner of corruption.

[00:16:17]as you pointed out all manner of swindling and all manner of things that we we take serious issue with and that is as a result of that and therefore the workers need to take back their own organization need to hold back I mean need to hold to account the leaders that they elect to positions of power so that the problems to which you have earlier referred and nipped in the bud as it were >> well thank you so much for engaging us this morning um and uh that was of course the uh general secretary of adusa rift aam as well as Um um Newton Masuku who is with Safu, a spokesperson there talking to us about the significant of workers days, the significance I should say and of course also uh young people and how they view unions and some of the unfinished work which I guess will never be finished but of course still a long way to go.