Johannesburg - The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) has accepted the minimum wage proposal as per the government's new offer of 8% for the current financial year.
Cosatu secretary general Solly Phetoe said the federation of trade unions finds this offer acceptable and reasonable as it will ensure that it does repel inflation.
"Cosatu is welcoming the government's proposal of an eight percent increase to the minimum wage," Phetoe told eNCA.
However, he stated that they were still pushing for the initial 10% increase that they had proposed.
"Eight percent is not what Cosatu proposed. We made a submission to Cosatu through the National Minimum Wage Commission for the increase of the CPI plus three percent," said Cosatu General Secretary Solly Phetoe.
"As Cosatu, we would love that the increase goes up to 10% for this year so that we can then be able to move quickly to the engagement of the living wage," he said.
Cosatu spokesperson Sizwe Pamla, in a statement, agreed with Phetoe, adding that Cosatu is pleased with the progress of the minimum wage talks, which have been ongoing since 2019.
"Cosatu is pleased with the progress that has been made with the NMW since it came into effect in 2019. We have raised it from R20, and it will soon pass R26 an hour... Whilst we have made progress on this front, it is critical that the department of labour cracks down on those employers who ignore NMW. Equally, we expect unions across the board to work together to expose such employers, and organised business too must play its part," he said.
According to Pamla, more than 35% of employers still fall below the national minimum wage stipulation in their dealings with their employees. He said this anomaly is against the principles for which organised labour has been fighting since 2019.
"It is unacceptable that about 35% of employers still fail to comply with NMW. This matter should be treated with the seriousness it deserves. These employers cannot be allowed to behave like they are above the country’s laws and treat their employees like glorified slaves," he said.
The Star