Johannesburg – Trade union membership is falling in South Africa and currently stands at 23%.
The pressing matter was discussed at a BRICS meeting earlier this week by member states and the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the African Union, as well as Zimbabwe, Botswana, Eswatini, Namibia, and Malawi as invitees.
Jahni de Villiers, of Labour Amplified, said that this dwindling union membership constituted a real threat to social dialogue.
The chief director responsible for collective bargaining in the Labour Market Policy Unit of the Department of Employment and Labour, Thembinkosi Mkalipi, said in South Africa fewer people were likely to be represented by trade unions. This was typical of the global situation.
"Trade unions have been weakened, and for decent work to be attained, you need strong representatives of workers," said Mkalipi.
Claire Harasty, special adviser to the deputy director for policy at the International Labor Organisation in Geneva, added that it was the responsibility of all ILO members, including BRICS, to promote, respect, and realise the fundamental principles of labour rights, regardless of whether they had ratified them.
"These rights reinforce each other. Without freedom of association, you cannot address the other rights. Although all the BRICS countries have progressed in promoting respect for the right to work, more still needs to be done," said Harasty.
According to Harasty, all member states that have recently ratified the convention on the elimination of child labour, need to redouble their efforts to ensure that action follows their public declarations.
This, she said, will give teeth to the Durban Call to Action that was adopted in 2022 to eliminate the worst forms of child labour.
The Star