The settlement provides for a 7% wage increase, backdated to 1 July this year (the original implementation date). About 7 000 cotton textile workers employed in 65 factories in this sector, nationally, will benefit from this agreement.
As a brand new provision, never before included in past agreements, the parties have committed to engage at plant level on measures, initiatives and projects aimed at reducing companies’ carbon footprints.
This is the first ever SACTWU wage agreement that directly tackles issues relating to the ‘green economy’. We hope to build and expand on this in future agreements.
The settlement was reached with the South African Cotton & Textile Processing Employers ‘Association, after 2 rounds of compulsory conciliation, under the auspices of the National Textile Bargaining Council (NTBC). The agreement was signed late on Friday last week, in Cape Town.
Southern African Clothing and Textile Workers Union