Issued by Ministry of Labour
Germiston 17 March 2000
Chairperson
Representatives of the Commission for Employment Equity and the Human Rights Commission
Comrades from organised labour, Cosatu, Nactu and Fedusa
Deputy Mayor of Germiston
President of the Germiston Chamber of Commerce
Members of the media
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
Comrades
On 21 March 1961, freedom loving South Africans marched in the dusty streets of Sharpeville to protest against one of the stupendous pillars of the Apartheid system - the pass laws. These laws were aimed at restricting the movement of Black South Africans in the land of their birth. The atrocious laws enacted by the architects of apartheid restricted workers from choosing where they could live and work. Armed only with their placards, the demonstrators were confronted by the full might of the apartheid state. In Bulhoek near Queenstown, a number of Christians were mowed down while praying. In Uitenhage, many people were killed by heavily armed policemen. The list is endless.
Without any provocation, the apartheid police gunned down several demonstrators and wounded many others. What the apartheid regime could not kill is the indomitable spirit of freedom-loving South Africans. Their spirit lives on. Their spirit inspired many of you to continue fighting until the day you cast your first vote in 1994.
Following the 1994 democratic elections, many of you participated in writing a new constitution underpinned by the Bill of Rights, in terms of which the rights of all South Africans are protected - including the rights of workers.
We believe that "Workers Rights are Human Rights". We believe that the promotion of workers rights is fundamental to the democracy that we are building.
The recognition of workers rights as human rights is essential to labour peace and stability and the eradication of all forms of unfair discrimination. It is a key component of our vision of a labour market conducive to economic growth, investment and employment creation.
The damage caused by the legacy of apartheid to our national workforce is reflected in many areas: the lack of skills of the majority of black workers, the lack of education, the high rate of illiteracy, the rising inequalities based on race and gender.
The sad truth is that apartheid and the racist attitudes that it fostered denied you the right to a job of your choice, denied you skills that could have helped you advance your career and a promotion when one was due.
It created a glass ceiling that prevented women from penetrating through to the upper echelons of our national workforce. It denied our economy the contribution of people with disabilities, who were instead left on the streets or forced to rely on welfare and charity.
We know too that this legacy still lives in our workplaces and in our labour market. But we also know that at no other point in time have we been better placed to take decisive steps forward in this regard.
We are here today to celebrate the entrenchment of the rights which have begun to restore the dignity of our people, which enable us to tap the human potential of all our country's people and which have created the conditions for a growing economy, for job creation and for a better life.
There are a variety of rights which are entrenched in our labour legislation: in the Labour Relations Act, the Skills Development Act, the Basic Conditions of Employment Act, the Occupational Health and Safety Act and so on. But today we want to focus on the Employment Equity Act, which was passed by our first democratic parliament, in the face of opposition from a minority who stood to gain from the very legacy which the Act seeks to reverse.
Firstly, this law gives all workers a remedy against discrimination at work. No worker can be unfairly discriminated against on the grounds of race, sex, gender, marital status, family responsibility, social origin, religion, HIV-status, disability and so on.
Secondly, it sets down steps that employers must take in consultation with employees on implementing affirmative action at work.
We have with us today the South African Human Rights Commission and I want to congratulate them on their campaign to make these rights a reality, as your slogan goes: "One law for one nation: no more discrimination".
These rights are entrenched in the law. Our challenge now is to make them a living reality in every workplace. We need to work together to make them work. The battle has begun. In any battle you need foot soldiers. You need cadres. We need those who understand the value of our revolution. Those values must be defended. No Moses will come from heaven to remove discrimination in the workplace. It is only you who can participate in this battle.
Spread the message of this battle against discrimination. Tell workers about this law. Ask management to make copies of information about this law available. Make the user-friendly User's Guide available for the management. Make them read it.
In fact, the Department's Code of Good Practice requires employers to page-by-page, cover-to-cover, run information and training sessions on this law. So insist that management does this for all the workers: other managers, supervisors, office workers and production workers.
Don't wait for the Department of Labour inspectors - be on the lookout for discriminatory practices and policies. Look at the housing, sickness and benefit policies. Many of these policies do not treat women and men workers in the same way. Some discriminate against people with disabilities. Implore management to check all their current policies. Some may have to be amended to give effect to the injunctions of our new progressive laws.
The Employment Equity Act says that all companies must conduct an analysis of their employment policies and practices, including a workplace profile. And on the basis of this analysis and profile, develop an employment equity plan.
What is this plan? It is a document that should be the result of a participative and consultative process that spells out what an employer is going to do to promote affirmative action. It should include goals on the numbers of people it aims to employ in different occupational categories and levels.
This is a document where employers have to make commitments to changing their recruitment policies, promoting more black people internally, beefing up their training of women, providing for child care facilities and so on. It is the role of trade union members to participate in the drawing up of the plan as well as monitoring the implementation of the plan.
Make sure that your employer submits a report to the Department of Labour on what his/her company has done about affirmative action. All employers who employ 150 or more employees must submit their first reports by 1 June 2000. This is not far away, so those of you who work in bigger companies and have not been consulted about an equity planning process should knock on their human resource managers' door and give them a 'wake up call'.
Comrades, we need to mobilise our people around this issue. We need a revolutionary movement to perform this task. We need the people's unity. Yes, we need a new cadre. A cadre who will be the backbone of this movement of the people.
Our commitment to promote employment equity across the national workforce remains steadfast and unshaken. In no way are we going to sit back, wait and compromise this commitment. We are available to help you implement the Act and to realize your rights.
Child labour
Before I conclude, I would like to touch briefly on another issue of critical concern to us during this Human Rights Week. That is the children's rights. Two years ago on Human Rights Day we promulgated the chapter of the Basic Conditions of Employment Act which prohibits work by children under the age of 15.
On the same day, the African leg of the global march against child labour began in Cape Town. This march, which travelled successfully through towns across our country culminated in Geneva, Switzerland, in June where a powerful statement was made on the need for an international instrument to enable the immediate eradication of the worst forms of child labour.
I am pleased to inform you that this has been achieved. We now have a new international convention which calls on governments to take immediate steps to eradicate child prostitution, child slavery, the recruitment of children in armed conflict, child pornography and so on. This convention also stresses the critical role of education in preventing child labour. South Africa is to be one of the first countries to ratify and support this convention.
But ratification also commits us to action. We need to identify in South Africa what are the worst forms of child labour and set up measures to stop and prevent children from working when they should be schooling and living the life of a child.
Conclusion
In conclusion, let me reassure the workers of this country that their rights are secured and protected under our labour law system. What remains for you is to exercise and enjoy these rights freely and without fear of intimidation and victimization. Our labour laws provide the framework within which these rights can be exercised and I believe we have adequate mechanisms to enforce them. Let our celebration today of Workers Rights are Human Rights not be just an event but a process of truly entrenching these rights in our working lives and throughout our society.
I thank you.