economic downturn
19 March 2009
Stemming the rising tide of retrenchments would be very critical if South
Africans were to weather the threat that the global economic crisis was
currently posing to its hard earned jobs and wage security gains, Labour
Minister Membathisi Mdladlana warned today.
Addressing the national collective bargaining conference of the Chemical,
Energy, Printing, Wood and Allied Workers Union (CEPPWAWU) in Pretoria,
Minister Mdladlana said while it was not inevitable at the moment that the
country would move into economic crisis, intensified job losses, particularly
in the mining and manufacturing industries, were an evidence of a threat by the
global credit crisis to roll back the gains of the African National Congress
(ANC) led government.
âA very important factor will be the extent of job losses the more jobs
lost, the more we lose productive capacity, the more demand weakens and the
more workers suffer. This will weaken our chances of avoiding the crisis and it
will make it more difficult to recover at a later stage. So, stemming the
rising tide of retrenchments is critical for us all,â he said.
Minister Mdladlana added that a united response by social partners the
Presidential Economic Joint Working Group, organised labour, business and
government was currently set out in a document the framework for South Africaâs
response to the international economic crisis.
This entails looking at concrete, short term responses that could help avoid
the crisis and strengthen the economy while positioning it to take full
advantage of the upturn in economic activity when this comes.
Urging companies to do everything in their power to avoid retrenchments as a
response to the economic situation, the Minister said using the downturn as an
opportunity to invest in skilling the workforce and modernising productive
capacity in anticipation of opportunities post global economic recovery were
some of the alternatives.
Enquiries:
Zingisile Mapazi
Cell: 078 803 7879
Issued by: Department of Labour
19 March 2009
