South African Federation of Trade Unions (1951)

Last updated

The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) was a national trade union federation of workers representing workers in South Africa.

The federation was founded in 1951, as a split from the South African Trades and Labour Council by right-wing unions which accepted apartheid and did not approve of black workers being given a role in governing trade unions. Some of the unions which split away were restricted to white workers, while others accepted "coloured" or Asian members, but none admitted black workers. [1] [2] [3]

The unions with a mixed membership, such as the South African Typographical Union, soon left to join the new Trade Union Council of South Africa, which similarly did not admit black workers. In 1957, the federation affiliated to the South African Confederation of Labour (SACOL). By 1962, it had 11 affiliates, with a total of 66,263 members. As SACOL became more centralised, SAFTU declined in importance, and it appears to have dissolved around 1980. [2]

UnionMembership (1962) [4]
Artisan Staff Association 16,611
Cape Explosives Industrial Workers' Union486
Mine Workers' Union 17,500
Natal Aluminium Workers' Union
National Association of Furniture and Allied Industries1,516
National Baking Industrial Union
Netherlands Bank of South Africa Staff Society
South African Actors' Equity Association
South African Airways Engineering Association740
South African Association of Municipal Employees 18,070
South African Engine Drivers' and Firemen's Association 4,538
South African Jockeys' Association60
South African Reduction Workers' Association 3,300
South African Teleprinter Operators' Society270
Transvaal Explosives and Chemical Workers' Union600
Transvaal Retail Meat Trade Employees' Union980

Related Research Articles

Federation of South African Trade Unions

The Federation of South African Trade Unions (FOSATU) was a trade union federation in South Africa.

Die Spoorbond was an Afrikaner railway trade-union formed in 1934 by H. J. Klopper, founder of the Afrikaner Broederbond, which advocated a policy of replacing all black railway-workers with Afrikaners. It rejected strikes and called instead for loyal service to the South African Railways and Harbours Administration (SARHA). The union had a membership of some 16,000 in the 1930s, considerably more than that of its rival, the National Union of Railway and Harbour Servants, which was forced to dissolve in 1937.

The South African Congress of Trade Unions (SACTU) was a national trade union federation in South Africa.

The Trade Union Council of South Africa (TUCSA) was national trade union federation in South Africa.

The South African Typographical Union (SATU) is a trade union representing workers in the printing and media industries in South Africa.

The Amalgamated Engineering Union of South Africa (AEU) was a trade union representing white manufacturing workers in South Africa.

The Council of Unions of South Africa (CUSA) was a national trade union federation in South Africa.

The South African Confederation of Labour (SACOL) was a national trade union federation of white workers in South Africa.

The National Union of Furniture and Allied Workers (NUFAW) is a trade union representing workers in the furniture industry in South Africa.

The Artisan Staff Association (ASA) was a trade union representing higher-paid technical railway workers in South Africa.

The South African Trades and Labour Council (SAT&LC) was a national trade union federation in South Africa.

The Co-ordinating Council of South African Trade Unions (CCSATU) was a national trade union federation of white workers in South Africa.

The South African Iron and Steel Trades Association was a trade union representing white metalworkers in South Africa.

The South African Footplate Staff Association (SAFSA) was a trade union representing white railway workers in South Africa.

The Federal Consultative Council of South African Railways and Harbours Staff Associations (FCC) was a national trade union federation bringing together unions representing white railway workers in South Africa.

The Sweet Workers' Union (SWU) was a small but long-lived union representing confectionery workers in South Africa.

The Durban Indian Municipal Employees' Society (DIMES) was a trade union representing municipal workers of Indian origin, in Durban in South Africa.

The South African Reduction Workers' Association (SARWA) was a trade union representing officials involved in processing mining ores in South Africa.

The South African Engine Drivers' and Firemen's Association (SAEDFA) was a trade union representing people involved in operating engines in South Africa.

The Engineering Industrial Workers' Union (EIWU) was a trade union representing engineering workers in South Africa.

References

  1. ↑ Simons, Harold; Simons, Ray (1987). One Hundred Years of Job Reservation on the South African Mines. International Labour Office. ISBN   9789221061588.
  2. 1 2 Miller, Shirley (1982). Trade Unions in South Africa 1970-1980: a directory and statistics. Cape Town: Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit. ISBN   0799204692.
  3. ↑ Jubber, Ken (1979). South Africa Industrial Relations and Industrial Sociology. Juta. ISBN   9780702110085.
  4. ↑ Wirtz, W. Willard (1966). Directory of Labor Organizations: Africa. Washington DC: Bureau of International Labor Affairs. pp. 39.25–39.28.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.