REGULAR FEATURES: BAROMETER OF RESISTANCE IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions lobbied the Congress of South African Trade Unions to picket the Zimbabwean border and embassy over human rights abuses.

The Zambia Congress of Trade Unions launched a complaint to government over reports that it did not send representatives to the International Conference on Social Security opened by President Levy Mwanawasa in Lusaka.

The Metal and Allied Namibian Workers Union (Manwu) accused the Road Fund Administration (RFA) of depriving contract workers at the Noordoewer and Ariamsvlei border posts of proper employment benefits.

Students at Copperbelt University (CBU) continue with their class boycott and protests demanding the reinstatement of bursaries for 14 of their colleagues, which were revoked because of their involvement in riots at the campus.

More than 320 workers at Meikles Hotel in Harare staged an unusual protest on Thursday night by sleeping in the hotel’s staff canteen in a bid to force management to award them a salary increment.

The Zambia National Union of Teachers (ZNUT) and Basic Education Teachers’ Union of Zambia (BETUZ) complained that the government sidelined them in the development of a plan aimed at addressing the plight of the education institution as directed by President Mwanawasa.

Members of the provincial council of workers of education, culture, youth, sport and mass media defended the increase of wages and the improvement of workers’ social and working conditions. They defended the need for the inscription of every worker onto social security, and continuous professional training of university lecturers to provide quality education.

The Namibia National Teachers’ Union warned government it could face a potentially

crippling national strike after Cabinet nullified an earlier undertaking to increase

salaries and benefits for long-serving teachers. 191 teachers were demoted and

over 15 000 others were told that there was no money to increase their salaries. Government said the appointment of 191 teachers at higher salaries since February last year was “erroneous” and they must pay back the difference because they were “overpaid”.

Vendors took to court and won their right to return to their market stalls that were destroyed in the government’s sweeping demolitions campaign.

Former Anglo-American Corporation (AAC) workers, now with African Life Financial Services (Aflife), have appealed to Government to help them get their benefits before being moved to a new South African buyer.

Thousands of mineworkers downed tools this week to force mining magnates to accede to the demand for better pay. It was the first major strike in the gold industry in 18 years, and the first that saw black and white unions join forces.

Workers at Xstrata’s Rustenburg ferrochrome plant returned to work after the firm and the National Union of Metalworkers union agreed to a new wage package. Talks with the union had failed after the company made a final offer of a wage rise of 6.5 to 8.75 percent versus the union’s demand of 10 percent. Xstrata raised its offer to between 6.5 and 9.75 percent on the basic wage.

The South African Commercial Catering and Allied Workers Union (Saccawu) members took to the streets in protests against job losses in Cape Town. They could not hand over their memorandum to the Metcash officials because they did not have permission to march.

A coalition of non-political organisations and trade unions was launched in Cape Town, with the aim to fight poverty and unemployment in the Western Cape. Some analysts say this might be a step towards a leftist alternative to the ANC. The SA Council of Churches, the Treatment Action Campaign, the SA NGO Coalition and Black Sash are among the coalition members.

The SA Municipal Workers’ Union called off its strike, citing police action against its members as the reason. Samwu demanded an 8% increase while the SA Local Government Association has offered only 6%. The strike lasted for more than 2 weeks.

3000 workers from the SA Commercial, Catering and Allied Workers’ Union (Saccawu) enter their third week on strike with demands for 40% of the retrenched workers be reinstated; that the company withdraw its labour court application; that union members who were dismissed at Trador and Trade Centre in Polokwane for participating in the strike be reinstated; and that union members who participated in the strike be treated fairly.