Federation of Unions of South Africa

Last updated

FEDUSA
Federation of Unions of South Africa
Founded1 April 1997 (1997-04-01)
Headquarters Johannesburg, South Africa
Location
Members
556,000
Key people
Godfrey Selamatsela, President
Riefdah Ajam, General Secretary
Martle Keyter, Deputy President
Affiliations ITUC
Website www.fedusa.org.za

The Federation of Unions of South Africa (FEDUSA) is the second largest national trade union center in South Africa.

Contents

History

The federation was founded on 1 April 1997, when the Federation of South African Labour Unions merged with the Federation of Organisations Representing Civil Employees. [1] Many affiliates of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions also joined. [2] On founding, about 80% of its members were white-collar workers, and 70% were white. [3]

The federation worked closely with the World Confederation of Labour, but did not affiliate. Instead, in 1998, it affiliated to the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, and has continued membership of its successor, the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC). [3] In 2006, it began negotiating a merger with the rival National Council of Trade Unions. They formed an umbrella organisation, the South African Confederation of Trade Unions, in 2007, but it achieved little, and the two federations remained independent. [4]

The federation has favoured negotiation over industrial action. In 2015, it advised its public sector affiliates to accept a pay rise lower than that offered, in order to reduce government expenditure. It has placed a strong focus on its union education programme. [5] In 2019, its long-term general secretary was dismissed after being accused of corruption. By 2020, it claimed a membership of 700,000, although the ITUC quoted a figure of 500,000. [3]

Affiliates

Current affiliates

The following unions were listed as affiliates, as of 2021: [6]

UnionAbbreviationFoundedMembership (2011) [7]
Administrative, Library and Technical Staff AssociatesALTSA
Airline Pilots Association of South AfricaALPA-SA1,591
Health & Other Services Personnel Trade Union of South Africa HOSPERSA199464,742
Hospitality Industry and Allied Workers' Union HIAWU1929
Insurance and Banking Staff AssociationIBSA7,963
Motor Industry Staff Association MISA194930,039
Motor Transport Workers' UnionMTWU
National Security and Unqualified Workers' UnionNASUWU9,534
National Union of Leather and Allied Workers NULAW19267,824
National Tertiary Education UnionNTEU2009
Public Servants' Association of South Africa PSA1920
Professional Transport and Allied Workers' UnionPTAWU198017,600
South African Communication UnionSACU19945,136
South African Parastatal and Tertiary Institutions UnionSAPTU2008
South African Typographical Union SATU189811,344
Suid-Afrikaanse Onderwysers Unie SAOU199732,029
Tertiary Education National Union of South AfricaTENUSA2005
United Association of South Africa UASA199874,138
United National Public Servants Association of South Africa and Allied Workers UnionUNIPSAWU1998
United National Transport Union UNTU2012N/A

Former affiliates

Union [8] AbbreviationFoundedLeftReason not affiliatedMembership (1999) [9]
Administrative, Technical and Electronic Association of South Africa ATEASA19961998Merged into UASAN/A
Care Centre, Catering, Retail and Allied Workers' UnionCCRAWUSA
Construction and Engineering Industrial Workers' UnionCEIWU
Eskom Employees' AssociationEEA2010DissolvedN/A
Food and General Workers' UnionF&G1,912
Hairdressers' and Cosmetologists' Trade Union2000Merged into UASA5,591
Independent Municipal & Allied Trade Union IMATU1996Disaffiliated66,657
Independent Performing Arts Trade UnionIPATU120
Internal Staff AssociationITAMerged into SAPTUN/A
Jewellers' and Goldsmiths' UnionJ&GU1939
Millennium Workers' UnionMWU
Mouth Peace Workers' UnionMPWU1997
National Democratic Change and Allied Workers' UnionNDCAWU
National Teachers' UnionNATU
National Union of Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Commercial, Health and Allied WorkersNUHRCCHAW
National Union of Prosecutors of South AfricaNUPSA2006Merged into PSA232
Officials' Association of South Africa OASA19181998Merged into UASAN/A
Post and Telecom AssociationP&T19026,358
Professional Health Organisation of South AfricaPHOSA2012Dissolved
Public and Allied Workers' Union of South Africa PAWUSA1967Transferred to COSATU24,943
SALSTAFF SALSTAFF19182002Merged into UASA16,357
South African Airways Flight Engineers' AssociationSAAFEA2009159
South African Blindworkers' OrganisationSABWODisaffiliated
South African Diamond Workers' UnionSADWU2001Merged into UASA910
South African Footplate Staff Association SAFSA19052000Merged into UTATU10,000
South African Independent and Allied Workers' UnionSAI&AWU2004
South African Railways and Harbours UnionSARWHU20012012Merged into UNTUN/A
South African Telecommunications AssociationSATAN/A
South African Workers' Union SAWU19362001Transferred to Solidarity21,798
Staff Association for the Motor and Related IndustriesSAMRI2001Merged into UASA1,333
Sweet Workers' Union SWU19252005DissolvedN/A
Technical Workers' Union TWU19242000Merged into UTATU11,118
United Private Sector Workers' UnionUPSWU2008
United Transport and Allied Trade Union UTATU20002012Merged into UNTUN/A
Werknemers Unie van Suid-AfrikaWUSA

Leadership

General Secretaries

1997: Chez Milani
2006: Dennis George
2019: Riefdah Ajam

Presidents

1997: Mary Malete
2008: Danie Carstens
2011: Koos Bezuidenhout
2016: Godfrey Selematsela

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References

  1. "FEDUSA - Federation of Unions of South Africa". FEDUSA. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
  2. Bendix, Sonia (2001). Industrial Relations in South Africa. Juta. ISBN   9780702152795.
  3. 1 2 3 Blackburn, Daniel (2021). Trade Unions of the World (PDF). ICTUR. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  4. "Federation of Unions of South Africa (FEDUSA)". South African History Online. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  5. Ludman, Barbara; Stober, Paul (2004). The Mail & Guardian A-Z of South African Politics: The Essential Handbook. Jacana Media. ISBN   1770090231.
  6. "Affiliated trade unions". FEDUSA. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  7. "COSATU's membership: All the facts". Politics Web. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  8. "FEDUSA: Working for the nation" (PDF). South African History Online. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
  9. Finnemore, Martheanne (1999). Introduction to Labour Relations in South Africa. 9780409028003.