Celebrating Workers’ Day with no work? Unemployment forum boycotts the day

Each year, 1 May is always filled with celebrations of the public holiday, Workers’ Day. However, an organisation for the unemployed in South Africa has called for the public holiday not to be celebrated amid the country’s high unemployment rate.

Forum for South Africa (Fosa) says the public holiday has become a day for unions, political parties, and organisations to make speeches and fill stadiums, while there are no solutions for the country’s unemployed.

The Forum said it would not participate in any celebration, not because it is wrong to do so, but because they have prioritised the feelings of the graduates who remain unemployed years after graduation.

How Workers’ Day was established

Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered his keynote address at Mpumalanga Kees Taljaard Stadium in Middelburg on Thursday, hosted by the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu). His address spoke little about the future of the country’s working class, but spoke extensively on Cosatu’s history.

He started his address by highlighting the party’s role in ensuring the Apartheid government removed the carrying of the ‘dompas’ (passbook) law. He added that the public holiday should be a day to pay tribute to leaders who sacrificed for the advancement of workers’ rights.

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“Since the formation of Cosatu, this Cosatu has been at the forefront of the struggle to fundamentally transform society and ensure that the workers of the country get the rights they deserve.”

Workers’ rights not to be reduced

During his address, Ramaphosa vowed that the rights of workers would never be reduced in any way in the future.

“In fact, workers’ rights must keep advancing and being made better.”

He noted that workers are still fighting for wages; however, he highlighted that Cosatu fought for the minimum wage as stated in the Freedom Charter.

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“Little as it [minimum wage] might be, Cosatu led the struggle.”

Ramaphosa called for an alliance between parties to drive transformation, to ensure jobs are created and to fight against poverty.

The struggle for the working class continues

Tebogo Mashilompane, National Leader of Fosa, said they acknowledge the history of the working class; however, they choose to align their thoughts with families whose breadwinners have been retrenched and unfairly dismissed.

“The struggle for the working class continues. Our history is dark. And much hasn’t changed post 1994.”

He said they do not demonise the people who see value in participating in events for Workers’ Day, but they call on unions to fight against unemployment, unfair labour practices and dignified salaries, instead of making public statements and singing slogans.

Solutions by Fosa

Mashilompane added that the call of the Minister of Basic education to prioritise changing the curriculum with learning areas that seek to empower pupils for the world outside high school.

“We further call on the Minister of Higher Education, to get rid or suspend qualifications that fails to respond to the challenges graduates face.

“These unnecessary qualifications rob students wishing to study scarce courses of an opportunity to access institutions of Higher Learning.

“We must have decolonised curricula from Basic education to Higher Education. The government has failed dismally in addressing the issue of unemployment.”

What hinders addressing unemployment

He said one of the delays in effectively addressing unemployment issues is the alignment of certain unions with political parties.

“This trend and behaviour have betrayed the unemployed and the working class. We call on the unions to fight harshly for the rights of the unemployed and the working class, rather than eyeing positions in political parties, which compromises the workers and the unemployed.

“We therefore remain firm in our call, that we will not celebrate while our relatives and neighbours go to bed hungry!”

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