Pretoria - Social partners from organised labour and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) have stressed the continued need for social dialogue in addressing the plight of workers in their respective places of employment.
Speaking on the second day of the Inspectors’ Conference taking place in Cape Town, Federation of Unions of South Africa representative, Eddie de Klerk, said social dialogue was critical in ensuring that the rights of workers were respected.
“We should never forget that workers’ rights are human rights and that we must not allow the employers to put profit above the rights of workers. Equally, we must be vocal about safety in the workplace and work with the inspectorate to promote Occupational Health and Safety,” said De Klerk.
He added that social dialogue would also ensure that the National Economic Development and Labour Council social partners would forever put the health and safety of workers on their agenda.
Frieda Oosthuizen, the National Treasurer of the Congress of South African Trade Unions, underscored the importance of strengthening social dialogue in the interest of protecting all vulnerable people in the workplace.
She called on labour inspectors to make it their business to visit workplaces, even in the absence of crisis.
The Director of ILO in Southern Africa, Vic van Vuuren, said social dialogue needed to be brought back into the world.
“We have lost the ability to speak to each other to resolve our differences. It is unfortunate that nowadays we always think of social dialogue in relation to collective bargaining and wages,” Van Vuuren said.
He listed high unemployment, people becoming desperate and vulnerable, and being taken advantage of as some of the labour market challenges.
The three-day conference, which is being held under the theme ‘Social dialogue in enforcement’, will end tomorrow, with speakers focusing on stress management in the workplace as well as the inspectors’ role in achieving decent work. – SAnews.gov.za
