Cosatu workers' political attitudes in South Africa Edited bySakhela Buhlungu Copyrightedmaterial TRADE UNIONS AND DEMOCRACY Cosatu workers' political attitudes in South Africa Edited bySakhela Buhlungu This On. JKF2-BSZ-FPB4 PrivateBtgX9182,CapeIbwn,8OOO1SoatfaAfrica W¥fw.h8fcprcit.ac.ia e2006HumanSdencesResearchCouncil Firstpublished2006 AUrightsreservedNopartofthisbookmaybereprintedorreproduced orutiBsedinanjrfiMrmorbfanfelectronic,mediai^^ inclwdtngphoto<Dopyiiigandmxwding,orinanyinformationstDraeeor letrievalifrtem,%ridioiitpermisiioninvrritingfromthepublisher ISBN0-7969-2127X TypesetbyStaceyGflMon CowerdesignbyjennyYoung nmimanaymeniuyconiness DistributedinAfncabyBlueWeaver POBox30370,Tokai.CapeTown,7966,SouthAfrica Tel:+27(0)21 701 4477 Fax:+27(0)21 701 7302 email:ortiers(i''biueweaver.coJEa www.oaeworldbooks.com DiftrfliuledinEuropeandtlieUnitedKingdomby EuroipanDiftribatkinServices(EDS) 3HenriettaStreet,GovernGarden,London,WC2E8UJ,UnitedKingdom Id:+44 (0)2072400856 te:-144(0)2073790609 email:oidfiB^dnndjs.Ai>.uk www.eurospanonlinexom DistributedinNorthAmericabyIndependentPublishersCiroup(IPG) OrderDepartment,814NorthiranidinSUeel,Chicago,IL60610,USA Calltoll-free:(800)8884741 Allotherenquiries:+1 (312)3370747 Fax: +1 (312)3375985 email:frontdeskd"ipgbook.com www.ipgbook.com PrintedandboundbyCwdaCommunications Copyrightedmaterial 5 Contents Listoftablesandfigures v Acknowledgements viii Acronymsandabbreviations x 1 Introduction:Cosatiiandthefirsttenyearsofdemocratictransitionin SouthAfinca 1 SakhelaBuhlungu 2 Tradeunionsandthechallengeoftheinformalisationofwork 21 FdwardWebster 3 Broadeninginternaldemocracywithadiverseworkforce: challengesandopportunities 45 GeoffreyWoodandPaulineDibbett 4 Uniondemocracy,parliamentarydemocracyandthe2004elections 75 JanetCherryandRogerSouthall 5 ThemarginalisationofwomenunionistsduringSouthAfi'ica's democratit'transition 97 MalehokoTshoaediandHlenfiiweHlela 6 Cosatuandblackeconomicempowerment 11 RogerSouthallandRo\icr liin^^ti 7 Workersandpolicy-making 143 JanetCherry 8 Cosatu,alliancesandworking-classpolitics 167 DevanPillay 9 ronrliision!CnsatiiandthedemorratirtranxformaHon ofSouthAfric.i 199 SakhelaBuhlunjju,RogerSouthallandEdwardWebster Afterword 219 Roj^crSoutlhiU,EdwardWebsterandSakhcJaBuhlun^iu Appendix 227 TakitijiDemocracySeriouslySurveyDataset 1994,1998and2004 Conlnhutors 249 indtx 151 Listoftables and figures Tables Tkble1.1 Cosaturegionscoveredinsurveys 4 TilbleIJ2 TakingDemocracySeriouslyyresearchers 1994,1998 and2004 5 Table 1.3 AgeprofileotCosatumembers, 1994, 1998,2004 8 Table1.4 Occupationalcategoryasdefinedbythecompany 8 TaUel3 Securityoftenure(2004only) 9 Table1.6 Highestformaleducationallevels 10 Table 1.7 Genderdistribution 11 Table1.8 Yearinwhichrespondentsjoinedunions 12 Table3.1 Frequencyofparticipationinunionmeetings* bypercentage 55 1Dd>le3^ Meansbywhichpositionofshopstewardvraa attained,bypercentage 56 Table3.3 Frequencyotshopstewardelections,bypercentage 56 Table3.4 Meansofelectionofshopstewards,bypercentage 56 Uriile33 Theappropriatemandateforshopstewards, bypercentage 57 Table3.6 Consultationbyshopstewards,bypercentage 57 Table3.7 Rightofrecall,hypercentage 58 Table3<i8 Incidenceutrcmuvalof shopstewardsinrespondents* workplaces,bypercentage 58 Table3.9 Attendanceatunionmeetingsbysecurityoftenure, bypercentage 59 Table3.10 Securityoftenurebyexperienceofhavingash(^steward removedbywoifcers,bypercentage 59 Table3.11 Ageandtimeoflastparticipationinshopsteward elections,bypercentage 60 Copyrigitedtfiatsrial TRADE UNIONS AND DEMOCRACY Table3.12 Genderversusattendanceofunionmeetings*by percentage 61 TkUe3.13 Unionmembershipandmandateofshopsteward, percentagebyunion 62 Table3.14 Experienceot havingreniovcUai»hopsteward, percentagebyunion 62 Table3.15 Attendanceatunionmeetings,percentagebyunion 63 Td>le5.1 Feroenta^ofwomenshopstewards,2004survey 101 Table5.2 Frequencyofunionmeetingattendance,percentage bygender 102 Table5.3 Knt)vvicdL;cot whatGHAR,NediacandliDVare, percentagebygender 102 Table5.4 Viewson theTripartiteAlliance,percentage bygoider 103 Table6.1 PerceptionsabouttheprimarygoalofBlackEconomic Empowerment,bypercentage 119 Tbble7.1 Improvementorprovisionofservicessincethe1998 and2004elections,bypercentage 161 Table7.2 RepresentationofinterestsbyapoHticalpartythat drawsthemajorityofitssupportersfromworkers,by percentage,2004survey 163 Ibble7.3 Whatworkerswilldoitthegovernmenthiilstodeliver services,bypercentage 165 Tible8.1 Cosatumembers*perceptionsofservicedeliveryin areaofresidence,bypercentage 173 IbUe8.2 lAiiondensityandCosatupresence,2002(percentages roundedoff) 175 Table8.3 Cosatumembers'attitudestowardstheAlliance, bypercentage 178 Table8.4 SupportforAlliancetocontinueafterthene3ctelection, bypercentage 179 TaUe8.5 Expectationsofworkers*preferredpoliticalparty, bypercentage 179 vi CopyrightedmatBrial LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES "DMe8^ Eqyectationsofpoliticaipartyaocountabilityto supporters,bypercentage 180 'nMe8.7 Workers*trustinpofiticalparties(andtradetuiums), bypercentage 180 Table8.8 CosaturepresentationinthenationalParliament, bypercent^e 181 Table8.9 Workers*responsesifgovernment£ulstodeliver, bypercentage 181 Tld>le8.10 Communitysupportforindustrialaction. byperoentage 185 Table8.11 Activelinkswithcommunity/civilsociety/social movements,bypercentage 185 Table8.12 OptionsfacingthelabourmovementinSouthAfrica 188 TMc9,l Union/partyrelationsinZimbabwe 201 Figures Figure2.1 Thediangingsoda!structureofthelabourmarket 23 Figure2.2 Anassessmentofattemptsatorganisinginformal work 37 Figure4.1 WorkervotingpreferencefortheANCby province,2004 78 Figure4.2 WorkersupportfortheTripartiteAllianceby province,2004 80 Figure4.3 ChangingworkerattitudestotheTriparttleAllianoe 81 figure4.4 Politicalallegiances:Cosatusurveyversusnational election results 82 Figure4.5 Consistenqrofworkers'viewsontheneedfor tradeunions 83 Figure4.6 Workerresponsesifgovernmentfiuktodeliver 93 Copyrigfted\^laterial TRADE UNIONS AND DEMOCRACY Acknowledgements Thisbookistheoutcomeotajoint researchprojectbetweentheSociologyof WorkUnit(SWOP)attheUniversityoftheWitwatersrandandtheDemocracy andGovernanceResearchProgrammeoftheHumanSciencesResearchCoundi (HSRC).Theresearchprocesswentthioughseveralstages,andtheassistance ofmanyindividualsandinstitutionsdeservesspecialacknowledgement From thebeginnint^ IlogerSouthalland EddieWebsterwereinstrumentalin conceptualisingthestudyanddesigningtheresearchplan.Wcwerefortunate tobejoinedbyaformidableteamofresearchersandscholarsincludingsome from the 1994and 1998phasesoftheCosatutime-seriessurvey.Then Roger Tangri and Freek Schiphorstjoined the project asour Dutch partnersbased attheInstituteofSocialStudies inTheHague.Allofthesescholarsbrought expertisethataddeddepthtothestudy. Cosatugeneralsecretary,ZwefinzimaVavi,andDavidJarvis,thethenacting directorofCotaHxtslabourpolicyresearchagency,NALEDI,kindlywroteus lettersofintroductionvribichhelpedopenmanydoorswhenourfieldworkers visitedworkplacesandunionofficestoadministerthesurvey. Students at the UniversitiesoftheWitwatersrand, PortJBlizabeth,Fort Hare andtheWestern Cape,aswellasindividuals in Durban and PortElizabeth y/Aio administered the questionnaire to hundreds of workers, acquitted themselveswithexceptionalprofessionalismandfacedthetaskwithadniirable enthusiasm.IntheWesternCapeAntheaMetcalfedidanexcellentjobofco- ordinatingthesurvey. At SWOP, Khayaat Fakier took care ofproject administration and financial aspects while Hlengiwe Hlela co-ordinated the implementation of the researchplan,includingoverseeingtheactivitiesofthefieldworkers.Shameen Govenderprovidedexcellentadministrativesupportfortheproject The HSRC's Democracy and Governance Researdi Programme made a financialcontributiontowardstheanalysisofthesurveydata,andthebulk offundingfordiestudycamefromtheSouthAfricaNetherlandsResearch ProgrammeonAlternativesinDevelopment. vlil Copyrightedmaterial ACKNOWLEDGfcMLNTS i i StaffattheHSRCpress,particularlyUtandoHaduza,MaryRalphsandKaren Bninswereextremelyhelpfulandsupportive. I would like U) express my ,sin<.ci\ ajipreciation to all these individualsand institutions, and to manyothers not mentioned by name here. But it is the workerswiioarethesubjectof thisstudywhodeservethegreatesttributefor givingusprivilegedaccessintotheirworld. Finafly,IwouldliketothankmyfiunUy-Nokusa,StyabulelaandSimnlkiwe- fortheirunderstandingandsupportdiroughoutthedurationofthisproject SakhelaBuhiungu Editor CopyiiyitedbtiatBhal