The Congress of South African Trade Unions in the North West province is preparing for the National Day of Action which is scheduled for Thursday, the 6th July 2023.
The National Day of Action was declared by the Central Executive Committee after making an assessment on the challenges facing the working class and South Africans in general.
Amongst the key demands which COSATU will be making on this day include, but are not limited to the following:
· Stop the attack on collective bargaining in all sectors; this is prompted by the fact that we have seen conditions of workers in all sectors being downgraded and some of the employers including government are reneging from signed agreements in the bargaining councils.
· Prevent crime and corruption, crime and criminal activities continue to terrorise our communities to an extend that our houses have been turned into mini prisons because of the fear of crime. Corruption continues to thrive despite the commitment made by the authorities hence we are calling for serious action to combat crime and corruption.
· Reduce the interest rate; we have seen the Reserve Bank increasing the interest rate and we believe that this has a negative effect on the workers and their families. The Reserve Bank must come up with better ways of growing the economy.
· Address the high unemployment rate and create decent jobs, our country has the most unequal society and the highest unemployment rate in the world, and we believe that this is not sustainable and unhealthy for democracy hence we call on all those who have the capacity to create jobs and reduce unemployment to do so.
COSATU has applied for a section 77 strike and a certificate in this regard has been issued. Therefore, all workers who will be staying away from work and those who will be participating in the marches will be protected from any action.
COSATU calls on all workers and those who believe that we need to rebuild our country to join this National Day of Action.
In the province our marches will start at 10H00 on the 6th of July and they will be held as follows:
a. Mafikeng from Montshiwa stadium to the legislature
b. Klerksdorp from the medical centre to the department of labour
c. Rustenburg from the taxi rank to the municipal building
Issued by COSATU North West
For more information please contact:
Kopano Konopi(Provincial Secretary) Cell: 082 339 5836