United action of the working class: against factionalism

Disunity in the mass working class movement only ever has one beneficiary: management. As we can see in the split in Cosatu, that includes the neoliberal government. aidc.org.za/

SAFTU calls for urgent action to end violent crime

SAFTU demands immediate action to end the carnage taking place in the Marikana informal settlement in Philippi as well as all other black residential areas of Cape Town. In one of the most horrific scenes, 11 people were shot dead last Friday. This is as if the Kate O’Regan and Vusi Pikoli inquiry in 2014 had not taken place and as if we are still living in the dark days of apartheid’s “wit doeke”! saftu.org.za/

SAPU AND SAFTU statement: 10111 Workers are paying a heavy price for the management in the same bed with sweetheart unions!

The public will recall that the 10111 workers embarked on a protected strike on 18 July 2017. The workers are demanding that the government treat 10111 workers the same as workers in other government call centres. Equal pay for work of equal value is a basic principle. These demands have not been met but a sweetheart deal was signed by a rival union in an attempt to end the strike. saftu.org.za/

Below the belt, below the breadline – South Africa’s GM contaminated bread industry

The African Centre for Biosafety has exposed the white bread industry in South Africa with the release of its new report “GM Contamination, Cartels and Collusion in South Africa’s Bread Industry.’ The report shows that the white bread tested contains high levels of Monsanto’s GM soya and that most companies are unashamedly flouting GM labelling laws and undermining the consumer’s right to know. acbio.org.za/

Seven years’ backpay for 61 Pick n Pay staff fired unfairly

Sixty-one Pick n Pay staff have been reinstated by the Labour Appeal Court after being fired for going on strike for an hour in 2010. Acting Judge Fayeeza Kathree-Setiloane ordered the supermarket giant to pay the 61 retrospectively to the date of their dismissal. timeslive.co.za/

Waiting period on Cape Town’s housing list is 60 years, Khayelitsha meeting told

“The City’s current delivery rate for housing is 6,000 a year. There are currently just over 350,000 people on the housing list. This means that you will have to wait about 60 years for a house if no one else joins the list.” groundup.org.za/

Treasury ‘ignored watchdog guidance’ in multibillion-rand Vodacom tender

The Competition Commission said it advised the Treasury against awarding a multibillion-rand tender to Vodacom. The Treasury went on to award the contract in September 2016 anyway. The contract, estimated at R5bn over four years, is for the supply of enterprise voice, data and all mobility services. businesslive.co.za/

The Israeli algorithm criminalizing Palestinians for online dissent

Israeli intelligence has developed a predictive policing system – a computer algorithm – that analyzes social media posts to identify Palestinian “suspects.” opendemocracy.net/

More than 70% of US fears robots taking over our lives, survey finds

As Silicon Valley heralds progress on self-driving cars and robot carers, much of the rest of the country is worried about machines taking control of human tasks. theguardian.com/