Trade Unions, and Trade Unionism in the Public Sector
SECTOR

1: The role of the progressive trade union movement in South Africa in the context of
transformation struggles

1: Any debate on the role of public sector unions in our country needs to start from a
consideration of the role of the progressive trade union movement. There are a number of
factors that have impacted on the trade union movement in our country during this period
of transition. Among these are:

2: Democracy and transformation in the context of capitalist globalisation The first
challenge is a ruthless, capitalist led, neo-liberal dominated globalisation process that
is radically altering the labour market and relationships between workers and capital. The
effects of this globalisation process have been felt by industrial workers the world over.
In the South African context the pain of this capitalist driven restructuring has been
felt twice over, as it were. The bulk of the negatively effected workers, mainly Black
people, have been recently politically liberated only to find themselves under a ruthless
economic assault. The irony of this is not easily missed, since there is a trade union
leadership cadre intellectually equipped to understand the source of this pain. But this
leadership cannot necessarily suggest a clear alternative to this process, a way of
engaging with it beyond resistance, or policies that the ANC in particular can own or find
sympathy with. What is clear is that the organised working class are not satisfied with
some of the current policy choices or programmes implemented by the government. These may,
in certain instances, still be in line with expectations that were voiced in the Freedom
Charter and later in the RDP. But there are many issues that are unresolved and many
aspects of the development strategy being implemented by government that fall short of the
mark for workers and the poor, whether by commission or omission e.g. GEAR, iGoli 2002 and
aspects of the restructuring of state assets.

3: The second is the transition from apartheid to democracy itself. Ironically,
COSATU’s relationship to the ANC now that it is the government, has impacted on the
federation in a unique manner that has had unintended negative consequences. The
constraints of being a trade union movement in a governing alliance have not been as
effectively managed by any of the tri-partite allies. The effects of the neo-liberal
agenda on the possible actions of the government and its allies further compound this
contradiction. It also raises the question of the relative expectations of each alliance
partner of each other.

4: The transition to democracy has precipitated a period where the working class has
appeared to win political space only to be prohibited from utilising it to improve its
conditions. In the first instance this is because of the dominance of the advocates of the
neo-liberal dominated globalisation process, who impose policy models that governments in
developing countries seem to have a great deal of difficulty in escaping from. Secondly,
COSATU has found its ability to articulate alternatives somewhat constrained by the fact
that it is part of a now governing national liberation movement, the ANC led Alliance,
during this difficult period. The Party itself has had to come to terms with this
situation.

5: It is not clear that COSATU or the SACP have learnt to conduct themselves in this
environment in a manner that does not cause anxiety among their colleagues in government
in particular. It is also clear that those in government are more than a little defensive
about the contradictions of being a progressive movement in government during this
historical period, since the policies that the government has to implement are constrained
by this very globalisation process. What the ANC is doing is easily interpreted as being
consistent with its own political tradition, but there is much that has changed in the
collective Alliance view of what transformation entails. The problem is not so much that
this is the case. Any process of revolution is one that entails twists and turns
precipitated by strategic and tactical necessities. But these factors and what informs
decisions in government in particular are not debated properly in our structures and are
also not communicated to the masses of our people. The ANC runs the risk of becoming a
transmission belt itself if major policy issues are not debated in its structures first
but worked out in the corridors of government and brought to the ANC for rubber-stamping.

6: Class realignment and shifting class interests in the NDR - Now that the ANC led
Alliance has political power, it is within the struggle to transform society itself that
the biggest potential for issues to arise which elevate the non-antagonistic
contradictions that exist within the Alliance to being matters on which serious clashes of
interest can occur. This is for a number of reasons. Firstly, the changing class
composition of the ANC, SACP, COSATU and the broader democratic movement means that all
statements of policy, interest, intention, and even of a banal nature need to be
interpreted with caution. The glue, as it were, that held the multi-class alliance that is
the ANC, SACP and COSATU together prior to 1994, has showed signs of being inadequate in
this new period. In short it is not clear that comrades trust each other as they did in
the past. By way of a second reason, it is also not clear that they should when it comes
to matters of policy. This is because it is wrong to assume that policy in general, but
especially economic policy, can be class neutral.

7: Thirdly, it is also not true that any policy statement by the ANC, SACP or COSATU
should be taken as progressive just because it emanates from these structures. If we are
to be honest with ourselves this is where the biggest problem arises. Our key weakness as
the Alliance is that we fail to adequately discuss and debate strategic and policy issues.
We then all find ourselves taking decisions on the hoof, because running a government,
trade union or political party necessitates decision-making by leadership. Our debates are
often truncated, after the fact and ill prepared for. We also have a tendency to skirt
around the areas of potential division and in the process fail to address matters of great
importance adequately. Clearly this points to our collective failure as leadership in the
Alliance structures.

8: The results of this conspiracy of factors require attention by the leadership of our
organisations. The important issue to note is that none of these issues raised are
insurmountable obstacles. The effect of neglecting these issues has had a cost. For
example there is some irritation among comrades towards one another. In certain instances
this has even led to a degree of paranoia, where any sign of disagreement on policy
matters is read as an attempt to undermine leadership or as evidence of a conspiracy. In
this context there is a specific role and there are clearly a number of key tasks for the
progressive trade union movement, and of the Party towards the trade union movement.

2: Strengthening the progressive trade union movement

1: The key task of the Party and its cadres is to strengthen the independent trade
union movement. This means that all cadres should join the unions and support their
struggles, even when it seems that there are contradictions between these interests and
the broader interests of the movement. These contradictions need to be resolved, but in a
manner that strengthens the trade union movement as a whole. An unhealthy tendency has
developed of criticising the trade union leadership, whether collectively or as
individuals. The argument is often heard these days that "this is not the COSATU we
know". This political opportunism, dressed up as revolutionary wisdom, must be
exposed for what it is. If there are problems in COSATU, or the SACP and ANC for that
matter, these must be raised in the organisations and debated.

2: The Party has itself been on the receiving end of a similar attack, where it was
criticised as "no longer being the SACP of Moses Kotane". Such a tendency, if it
is not just a case of harmless political nostalgia, is disingenuous, since none of our
political organisations can ever stay the same and remain relevant. They must continue a
tradition and build upon it, but the leadership of each organisation must be allowed and
is required by the revolution to interpret the interests of its members and constituency
in the immediate context it finds itself. Leadership must be supported in this effort,
otherwise we will create a political tradition of narrow sectarianism, where a
self-appointed elite who regard only their interpretation of the labour movement and our
common programme of action as relevant. If leadership is making mistakes it must be
corrected, but not through lectures or regular tongue-lashings. The Allies must engage
each other with mutual respect as independent organisations that are partners with a
common strategic interest. This applies to all levels of the alliance – from branches
right up to national leadership.

3: The trade union movement can only be strengthened by ensuring that it has a
privileged relationship with its allies and with the government of the day. The tendency
to allow relationships to develop with labour more broadly, and business for that matter,
is one that can threaten the Alliance if this is done as a counterweight to the
relationship with COSATU and the SACP. In this respect the Alliance has proposed
mechanisms to ensure these relationships are strengthened but these have not yet been
implemented.

4: The Party has a specific role to play in strengthening the trade union movement. But
more specifically what are the tasks and challenges for the Party in building
revolutionary trade unions?

3: Organising, defending and servicing members

1: This can only be done through building united, strong, independent, progressively
orientated trade unions that look after the interests of workers, the broader working
class and the poor generally. In this regard a key challenge for the federation is to
unite the current proliferation of unions that are not progressively orientated as well as
the former racially based unions that are still conservatively orientated under the
leadership of COSATU.

2: By taking up shop floor issues and broader political issues of the community COSATU
has developed a different character to most trade union movements. The criticism that
COSATU is not a political party is one that ignores the history of the progressive labour
movement in our country. It is not the unions that are political but the key activists who
built and still, in some cases, work in the unions. These cadres are essential to the
unions, since they constantly bring a political consciousness to the working class and
reproduce revolutionary unionists. There will naturally be a tension between this role of
unions, as economistic entities, and the broader struggle for national liberation and
socialism. But this tension can only be managed by ensuring the correct leadership is
running the unions with the support and involvement of workers. This is why we need
socialist cadres and activists working in unions and workers and union leaders being
recruited into the SACP.

3: COSATU must also organise marginalised workers into its ranks and work amongst the
Coloured, Indian and white working class. Marginalised workers include young workers,
domestic workers, farm-workers and casual workers.

4: Political education

1: The unions, and crucially communists and cadres of the liberation movement in the
trade union movement, must be active in the continuous political education,
conscientising, confidence building, training and skilling of workers in the arts and
traditions of trade unionism, the Congress movement, the Party and revolution. If there is
a lack or failure to ensure political education in the trade union movement it is our
collective failure as the leadership of the Alliance and not just that of COSATU
leadership.

5: Uniting the working class

1: To do this the unions must unite the working class to fight racism and sexism and to
build non-racialism and non-sexism while mobilising for a socialist transformation of
society. There needs to be a rigorous analysis of the trends in trade unionism, the growth
of reactionary and apolitical trade unionism, and the weaknesses in COSATU need to be
corrected to ensure that these tendencies are minimised or curbed.

6: Advancing, deepening and defending the NDR

1: Critical in this regard is the trade union movement’s role in advancing,
deepening and defending the NDR through strengthening the Alliance by building the ANC and
the SACP and ensuring that the working class leads these organisations. In this respect it
is critical to sort out relationships between the Alliance leadership to ensure proper
coordination, effective cooperation and limit the policy clashes that have become a
feature of the Alliance in recent times. At the heart of this issue lies the issue of the
unions using their power to influence the Alliance and broader society towards their
positions. This has to be balanced with a thorough debate in the unions on each issue to
ensure that the issue they are dealing with is being considered in terms of the interest
of the broader working class, which includes the poor and the unemployed, as well as other
interest groups such as women, the disabled etc.

2: It is also clear that action taken by the trade unions, including mass mobilisation,
must be aimed at strengthening the NDR and the ANC in particular. To ensure this, the
Alliance needs to allow for debate on the issues of the day and of possible programmes.
The unions need to ensure that action is not only reactive but also proactive, in support
of the government and its programmes. In this regard we have failed to utilise the state
to mobilise the people, except on particular occasions, such as elections. The unions
would be an obvious starting point for such mobilisation, but there needs to be discussion
on how to ensure this practically.

7: Policies for the working class

1: Developing working class biased and orientated policies and having these adopted as
the broad policy positions of the Alliance to influence the transformation of society. The
unions must be active in helping to create an enabling environment for development, growth
and opportunity for all people.

8: Internationalism

1: Building solidarity with and between workers in the sub-continent, the continent as
a whole and globally. The unions must be central to building internationalism and giving
life to the realisation of an African Renaissance as a vision to liberate the continent
from ignorance, poverty, disease and war.

9: Revolutionary trade unionism: the role of progressive public sector unions

1: Arising from the issues regarding the role of the progressive trade union movement,
it is important to consider what the specific tasks of the progressive public service
unions are.

2: Public sector unions are unique in that they organise workers within the state. They
therefore operate in an environment that is not one in which profits are generated, but in
which public resources are consumed in the delivery of services and in the form of
transfers to those deemed needy. In other words, they compete for resources with the
general public. This does not mean that public service workers should not be paid a living
wage, but that they need to exercise caution when making claims for these resources.

3: Therefore we need to highlight that public sector unions, despite their
distinctiveness in terms of location, cannot be separated from the rest of the trade union
movement and the struggles of the broader working class and their connections to the
struggles against capitalism.

4: The best way for public service workers and their unions to position themselves in
the light of this situation is for these unions to be the leaders in creating a new ethos,
work ethic and culture in the public service. If workers make claims for resources while
delivering services of a poor quality they will understand why the public are not
sympathetic to their plight. If however the public feel that public service workers are
trying, they will even overlook the effect of a lack of resources on the services
delivered. But this issue must be tackled politically by the unions. In other words,
central to the public service unions succeeding in their efforts is for them to show that
they are working with the people to improve their lives.

5: There is a need for a concerted anti-corruption campaign by the unions that includes
whistle-blowing on corrupt officials, monitoring companies for corruption, and ensuring
offenders are prosecuted.

6: In addition to this, public service unions need to emphasise working with the
government to assist in driving the reconstruction and development of our country. In this
respect the unions can play a role despite disagreements on wages and salaries. The key in
this regard is to understand the distinctiveness and dialectical relationship between
political responsibilities of all cadres of the movement and interests as workers. This
does not mean that public service unions and their members must accept privatisation,
contracting out, or downsizing, but in all these cases the unions must have the capacity
to generate viable policy alternatives.

7: The public service unions must debate and come to an understanding of what it is
reasonable for the state to be responsible for in terms of economic activity, provision of
services and development generally. Union members must then be cadres responsible for
advancing the revolution and its goals of reconstruction and development, guided by this
philosophy. A key issue in this regard is selling the alternative vision the unions have
to broader society. Recent initiatives by COSATU public service unions on service delivery
are important and must be extended. For example, SAMWU mobilised the community in
Winterveldt against a plan to privatise the provision of water. SAMWU, the community, the
Rand Water Board and the municipality worked on a joint project to keep water provision in
the public sector. The community agreed to keep consumption at affordable levels, paying
for services by households who can afford and end illegal connections. Now the entire
community has water at affordable prices and revenue collection has increased four times.
Some of the revenue will be used to extend water provision and sanitation to neighbouring
villages. In other words, quality service from the public sector depends on involvement of
workers and communities and cannot come from the top only.

10: Building people’s power, working class power and the SACP

1: Following up COSATU resolutions on building the SACP, it is important COSATU and
affiliates take practical and intensified steps to build the SACP as an independent
leading political force of the South African working class. Already several unions are
taking a lead in this area. It is important that each union develops its own specific
contribution to building the SACP.

2: The building of SACP industrial units and branches must be a key priority for
unions. At a local level, SACP and COSATU structures must convene and hold regular
socialist forums to share perspectives, struggles and for ideological development.

3:The SACP and COSATU are working towards a national socialist commission and local
based socialist forums to involve COSATU, affiliates and the SACP. This socialist
commission should be a regular forum for the SACP and COSATU to further deepen the
relationship between the SACP and the labour movement and should act as a body to develop
common strategy and tactics to advance the struggle for socialism.

4: It is important to use this year’s Red October campaign to kick-start the
above. The main task is sufficient advance planning, most thorough preparation of cadres
and mobilisation of resources.

5: The contribution of COSATU and affiliates to building the SACP is in their own
self-interest. To turn current battles into a sustained fight for socialism, workers need
a strong SACP and the SACP needs revolutionary workers.