Cosatu has power only by ANC fiat

DEAR SIR — The proposed labour legislation and the contraction of industry refers. What these issues illustrate is a distortion of power rather than an interplay that achieves balance in a society.

A numerically dominant government, the African National Congress (ANC) — can pass legislation which is bad for one social partner (business) but is held out (falsely) as good for the other — the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) — rather than labour. The legislation is intended solely to keep on-side a union movement that has political power only because the ANC has allowed it to have, not because its power is a natural consequence of societal need.

Business, which has little power in the tripartite “alliance”, has the power to strengthen or weaken the fabric of society, but is not taken seriously by the ANC and Cosatu, so ultimately it is ignored. The result is that instead of creating businesses and industries that in turn create jobs and expand the tax base, they relocate. Rumours are that a company is looking to relocate its vehicle assembly plant in the Eastern Cape to Mozambique, Botswana or somewhere. Anywhere but here. Labour legislation is cited as the main reason. “Economic refugees”, anyone? But this is where real power is exercised. The factory jobs are eliminated. The families relying on the income are destitute. The support industries collapse and those families too are negatively affected. Ironic. The ANC and Cosatu do not have the power to do anything about it. If they supported business, all three could exercise power to retain and increase businesses and thus jobs. Without the crutch of the ANC, Cosatu is not an equal to business. It does not create business.

And the government is supporting labour, which is in the process of fracturing. If Cosatu splits, what happens to the faction the government does not support? And the National Economic Development and Labour Council also has community representatives.

Who do they represent? How can anyone support the infinite range of “communities” in SA? We either represent our own interests or we do not represent them at all. We have the guts to present our own interests in ways we deem fit.

SC Weiss Parktown North