FAWU ELECTED NATIONAL OFFICE BEARERS - Elected November 2024

 

FAWU DEMANDS GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION IN TONGAAT- HULETT DEBACLE

 

The Food and Allied Workers’ Union completely rejects the way the recent announcement of Tongaat-Hulett regarding their intention to file for business rescue was done. This unexpected move has created huge uncertainty among employees and suppliers and could have serious consequences for the industry and the South African economy as a whole.  It is disturbing that the company has filed for business rescue without even a notice to the relevant unions who represents thousands of members at the Amatikulu, Felixton, Voermoon, Maidstone and Refinery plants.

 

This shocking move by the company shows utter disregard towards employees and affected businesses. With Tongaat-Hulett being such a major supplier of sugar, it also has far-reaching consequences for the whole sugar value-chain and the economy of the country with many fearing it could lead to the market being flooded with cheap imports.  Furthermore , it flies flat in the face of the ideals of the Sugar Master plan which included addressing job retention  and sugar value chain diversification, amongst other things.

 

Whilst we acknowledge that a business rescue task team has been established to brief stakeholders about the progress, we still require answers on certain issues from the company management themselves. For this reason, FAWU seeks the urgent intervention of the Department of Trade and Industry to try and avert a full-blown economic disaster in the sugar sector and the decimation of jobs.

 

For more information please call the FAWU General Secretary Mayoyo Mngomezulu on 082 440 4039 or the Deputy General Secretary Vuka Chonco on 082 499 5854. Released by FAWU media liaison officer Dominique Martin on 082 4985631

 

MEDIA STATEMENT

             FAWU OPPOSES SA BREWERIES OUTSOURCING PROPOSAL

 

The Food and Allied Workers’ Union (FAWU) vehemently rejects the latest restructuring proposal by the South African Breweries (SAB) that will affect its transport division and about twenty-seven employees displaced from being SAB employees. The proposal amounts to nothing but a system of reducing the salaries and benefits of workers selectively without a similar treatment for managers. We believe that this move could set a dangerous precedent in that it can advance to other departments and threatens the job security of all our members within South African Breweries.

 

We believe the company has misled the Union in terms of the Section 197 by not being completely transparent about the process as declared in the Labour Relations Act. The expectation of the business was supposed to among others detail its intention while according a platform for the Union to engage with the business meaningfully to also find alternatives of saving jobs and not to reinforce its intention to outsource. FAWU is appalled that the company is seeking to outsource to a third-party logistics service provider FADEL of which its head office is located in Paraguay. This does not make business sense at all or even economic rational as it undermine the protection of South African economy where opportunities of reinvestment are not for the local economy but ownership enjoyed outside the country. It is an initiative increase wealth for shareholders by outsourcing workers and as a result, creating cheap labour which seems to be a global venture for ABInbev.

 

This type of restructuring is an outright attack on organised labour and does nothing to advance the interests of workers in general and even the South African economy. It targets employees in the bargaining unit who is not even involved with the logistical management of trucks which is indicated as the rationale for the company’s proposed changes. 

We also condemn the company for its unrealistic timelines which projected implementation of proposed changes in October 2022 as this displace exchange of minds at any given bilateral engagement processes.

 

FAWU demands that SAB to indefinitely suspend the process of outsourcing and meaningfully consult with the Union with a sole purpose of ensuring job security for our members.

 

 For more information, please contact the General Secretary, Mayoyo Mngomezulu on 082 440 4039 or at mngomezulu.mayoyo@fawu.org.za or the Deputy General Secretary, Vuka Chonco on 082 499 5854 or vuka.chonco@fawu.org.za

 

Released by FAWU media officer, Dominique Martin on 082 498 5631

FAWU Rejects Decision To Suspend Poultry Anti- Dumping Duties

               FAWU Rejects Suspension 

                of Poultry Anti-Dumping Duties

Media Statement

 

FAWU has learnt that the DTIC Minister, Mr Ebrahim Patel, has decided to suspend the imposition of the anti-dumping duties for the period of 12 months. This is said to be a contribution by the department to deal with the current rapid rise of food prices in the SACU market and globally including the impact it has towards the poor.

FAWU is against this decision because in the long run, this will collapse the entire poultry industry.

 

The ITAC (International Trade Administration Commission) initiated an investigation to ascertain if indeed there is an unfair trade in the sector. The conclusion of the investigation necessitated the ITAC to recommend that the Minister in the Department of Trade, Industry and Commission should impose a definitive anti-dumping duties. This means that there would be an existing protection of the local supply of chickens in the country.

FAWU welcomes the outcome from the ITAC (International Trade and Administration Commission) that anti-dumping duties be imposed against imports from Brazil, Denmark, Ireland, Poland and Spain.

 

Instead of the DTIC Minister following this recommendation, the Minister decided to suspend the imposition of the anti-dumping duties for the period of 12 months. This therefore gives an open space for other countries to take over South African market of which will lead to the collapse of the poultry sector.

We therefore dispute the actions of the Minister as it ultimately destroys jobs in the poultry sector which is practically the opposite of this recommendation by ITAC.

 

We initially in our marches argued against a 30% to 35% share of foreign chickens as a result of chicken dumping as far back in 2016.

Chicken dumping leads to imported chicken potions taking the large percentage in the South African market at a way cheaper price than the local chickens. Consumers will obviously buy cheaper chicken potions because local consumers are price sensitive and it is not the fault of consumers to be price sensitive, more so that the salary scale of workers in South Africa is low, but it is the fault of practices of unfair trade where chickens are dumped in the country.

It goes further that there will then be less chicken sold from local supply since competition favours the imported chicken. This result to workers being retrenched, as we already lost over 2 000 jobs from the previous chicken dumping. There will then be closure of small-scale farms and small business that supply farms as they cannot continue participating in the value chain. It is even worse for the informal economy as most poor communities survive through selling chickens on the streets

The unemployment being at a record high of over 40%, we cannot allow this unfair trade as it puts the jobs of more workers in South Africa at risk, threatening their livelihoods, their families and even their communities.

 

The result of our mandate must conform to job security, food security and sovereignty of our economy.

The DTIC Minister is well aware that the absence of anti-dumping duties leads to the opposite of this mandate as it leads to job losses through imports taking advantage with influx of chicken potions that increase more than the locally supplied chicken in the market.

The same department initiated a Poultry Master Plan of which its design was to protect the sector following the very same unfair trade which contributed to loss of jobs among others. There was a decision by the labour, Department of Trade Industry and Commission together with the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, employer representatives and other stakeholders that there should be a growing number of small-scale poultry farming and local production networks, increasing the scale of contract farming supply, large integrated producers, growth in industrial scale food processing, growth in employment (at the time agreed to be 3 900 by 2020), more black farmers participating in the value chain through the application of transformation, growth of exports by opening other markets in the European countries including in the Africa region, etc.

The current jobs created through Master Plan is 1 640. The current foreign chicken in the market is now less by 5% which goes to indicate a positive direction in terms of the international balance of trade. Now this decision is a give-away to chicken dumping and shall lead to the opposite of this Master Plan. This shall mean that grain and generally the agricultural sector, is at risk of even contributing less to the GDP.

 

The DTIC, cannot reverse all the revolutionary strides against the European Union countries to make sure that the poultry industry is protected, jobs are secured including our economy. Meanwhile FAWU leadership shall be inviting the Minister for an urgent meeting, we therefore demand that the Minister must follow the recommendations of International Trade Administration Commission and impose definitive unti-dumping duties.

For more information, please contact the General Secretary, Mayoyo Mngomezulu on 082 440 4039 or at mngomezulu.mayoyo@fawu.org.za or the Deputy General Secretary, Vuka Chonco on 082 499 5854 or vuka.chonco@fawu.org.za

#CapeCookies Employees Demand A Living Wage

 

News Release- 7 July 2022

Cape Town-

About a hundred members of the Food and Allied Workers’ Union (FAWU) who are employed by Cape Cookies at 85 Voortrekker Road in Maitland have embarked on a protected strike action on Monday, 4 July 2022.

 

The employees, most of whom are women with young children, are out in full force bringing operations to a halt with the exception of a few non –union members who are still working inside. 

Employees say they have not had an increase for the last two years and are demanding R 10 per hour or a R 500 wage increase as an alternative. FAWU members also demand an annual bonus equal to four weeks’ wages and for increases to be backdated to May 1, 2022.

The union rejects the company's refusal to award these workers a decent wage!

Released by  FAWU Media  & Communications Dept - Dominique Martin- 082 4985631

FAWU To March To Unilever Head Offic

 Media Statement - 14 June 2022

 

The Food & Allied Workers’ Union (FAWU) will march to Unilever’s head office in Umhlanga in the Kwa-Zulu Natal province on Wednesday 15 June 2022 to hand over a memorandum of strike demands to the company. We believe a multinational such as Unilever can accede to workers’ reasonable demands for better conditions and a decent wage increase, especially given the challenging economic environment the working class finds itself in.

 

About 600 FAWU members embarked on industrial action at the Indonsa plant in Umhlanga in the Kwa-Zulu Natal on 27 May 2022 following failed wage talks with the employer under the auspices of the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration.  Our members demanded a 12 percent wage increase in February this year, an increase in the staff quarterly vouchers, an increase in sick leave 15 days per annum and for the implementation date to be backdated to April 1 2022.

 

The company withdrew its wage proposal on 30 May 2022 after it was rejected by workers on the basis that it was the very same proposal the company had made when the parties reached a deadlock.  The company’s latest wage proposal offer stood at a deplorable 5,8 percent while the union demanded a 9,5 percent wage increase. FAWU believes that production is heavily affected.

 

Unilever, a global consumer goods company sells well-known goods like Hellmans, Knorr and various other food and beauty products.

 

The march departs from 77 Riverhorse Road at 11h00 on 15 June 2022 and the memorandum handover will take place around 12h00 at 15 Nollsworth Crescent, Nollsworth, Umhlanga, Kwa-Zulu Natal.

Enquiries: KZN Provincial Secretary Siphiwe Dlomo (082 492 5100) or alternatively FAWU Deputy General Secretary Vuka Chonco (082 499 5854). Released by FAWU media officer Dominique Martin – 082 498 5631

Broadway Sweets Workers On Strike

 

 

FAWU members in Germiston in Johannesburg are engaged in industrial action at Broadway Sweets in demand of a providend fund, annual bonus and the implementation of job grading. In addition , our members totally reject the company’s unilateral and unauthorised deductions of a so-called COVID loan. The strike started May 24, 2022.

 

FAWU is outraged at the employer’s refusal to meet with us to discuss organisational rights at the company. We have learnt that employees who are not affiliated to the union have been threatened with disciplinary procedures if they dared to join the strike. Our members have had it with this company’s intransigence by paying members far less than they deserve. These employees are earning R10 per night shift (R50 p/week) which is outrageous in the current economic environment in the country. The employer does not provide transport and our members have to fork out R 250 per week which is simply unsustainable.

 

Management at Broadway Sweets has shown that they have zero interest in the welfare of his employees as the employer arrogantly claims that  he is
simply “recovering” wages he has paid them during the first lockdown in 2020 when they were not on duty. FAWU plans to engage the Department of Labour regarding the unauthorised deductions of our members.