A large group of clothing employers, organised under the auspices of a national employers' association called the Apparel Manufacturers of South Africa (AMSA) has threatened to boycott this year's clothing wage negotiations, the General Secretariat report tabled at last week's National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the COSATU-affiliated Southern African Clothing & Textile Workers' Union (SACTWU) shows. The SACTWU NEC was held from 16-18 March 2011 in Cape Town.
This threat was made in a letter sent to SACTWU by AMSA, on 1 March 2011. In essence, these clothing bosses claim that they should not be required to present themselves for wage negotiations this year, due to the extent of wage non-compliance in the industry and the fact that the union has not accepted their proposal for a 'new wage model' for the industry.
The SACTWU NEC has cautioned AMSA that their threat is provocative and means a route of confrontation which will not be in the best interest of the local clothing industry. The union's NEC has re-endorsed the compliance phase-in agreement for the industry concluded at bargaining council level in November last year, whereby non-compliant companies would be allowed to phase in to 70% of the minimum wage by 1 April 2011, to 90% by January next year and to 100% by April 2012, as an important signal that we wish to work together with employers who show goodwill to obey the law.
The union's NEC has endorsed the sentiments expressed by the union's secretariat, in a formal response letter submitted to AMSA Director Johann Baard by the SACTWU Deputy General Secretary.
Southern African Clothing & Textile Workers' Union (SACTWU)
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