Minimum wage won’t benefit everyone in SA
NEDLAC’S proposal of a national minimum wage of R3 500 can be best described as a double-edged sword.
On the one hand it will please some. On the other it will threaten jobs and lead to unemployment.
Employers, already hard hit by the downturn in our economy, are battling to survive and to keep their home fires burning.
Some have employed “foreigners” from other African countries, such as Nigeria, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Swaziland, to keep their businesses going.
Granted, they pay these foreigners a pittance, do not register them as workers, but, at least they have them employed so that they can look after their families.
Now when the new national minimum wage dispensation kicks in some time next year, all these foreigners will be out of work – and some locals as well.
It will increase our unemployment rate, which has gone beyond 27%percent, according to Stats SA.
If our government accepts the Nedlac proposal, it must prepare for mass strike action
So, whatever decision is reached, it must be thought over carefully. It will be bigger than #FeesMustFall.
Already we are on the cusp of a downgrade from Moody’s and other rating agencies, so the writing is on the wall: set a minimum wage scale at your own peril. MOHAMMED AHMED Kloof I READ newspapers to see what is happening in the world and am usually left in a state of near despair over the running of our country or rage at the selfishness of those in power who appear to seek only longer terms in office, where their achievements are nil, or more money or expensive cars.
Meanwhile, the number of jobless grows daily and education, health and housing take a back seat in the greater scheme.
The articles on jobless people who are growing their own food to feed their families and others, and the beautiful photos sometimes of people who seek refuge in overnight shelters, but still are able to smile for the cameraman, help me retain a sense of balance.
Best of all, of course, is maverick writer Ben Trovato’s column. He gives me belly laughs every week without fail. WENDY ERASMUS
Kloof