Cosatu lashes ‘armchair activists’

COSATU yesterday hit out at members who failed to actively take up the fight against labour brokers but were then quick to blame the union for the problem, calling them “armchair activists”.

Announcing its May Day plans at Sadtu House in Durban, the union said the issue of labour brokers was a stubborn challenge it was keen to overcome.

The union will hold its May Day rally at Currie’s Fountain Stadium after a march that will start at Gugu Dlamini Park.

On Saturday, the union will also march in Isithebe, near Mandeni, against “exploitative practices of employers in that area”.

It announced several issues it planned to highlight on the day, including the fight against job losses and retrenchments, and the fight against racism and xenophobia.

Responding to a question about how the union would deal with labour brokers, Cosatu provincial secretary Edwin Mkhize said this struggle was being complicated by a lack of commitment from workers.

“People do not appreciate that it was Cosatu who recognised that the issue of labour brokers was a monster against workers’ rights that needed to be dealt with,” said Mkhize.

“Everyone likes to blame Cosatu. Our members blame Cosatu – they are what I would call armchair activists. If we were to call (for a march) against labour brokers today, how many of our workers would be there?”

Labour broking has had national attention recently, with university students protesting against the outsourcing of support and service staff at institutions. This has led to pressure on universities to insource staff.

Mkhize also touched on the violence that had shut down-factories in Isithebe. Community members were mainly angry about the selection of a ward councillor to stand in the coming elections.