More than 80 000 SACCAWU members to join strike in support of Centralised Bargaining

On Friday, the 26 November 2010 SACCAWU members from twenty-eight (28) national companies will embark on a one-day strike action in support of our demand for Centralised Bargaining Forum. For years SACCAWU has engaged national retail and wholesale companies for the establishment of a Centralised Bargaining Forum only to be met with arrogance and intransigence. As a result of this SACCAWU obtained a certificate to embark on protected strike action after failing to resolve the dispute at the CCMA.

We expect more than 80 000 workers to join this day-of-action. SACCAWU's call for a Centralised Bargaining Forum has been on the Union's agenda for years now and is more urgent today than ever before, especially in the light of globalisation and unilateral restructuring and workplace reorganisation, compounded with massive jobs losses and lack of coherent sect oral industrial trading polices, further exacerbated by some panic stricken reposition for fierce competition to be imposed by the ultimate entry of Walmart within; our shores and the continent.

ANTI_WALMART COALITION CAMPAIGN LAUNCHED

Press release on the launch of the Anti-Walmart Coalition Campaign 4 November 2010

Introduction

On 27 September Walmart made a 'non-binding' offer to takeover Massmart. SACCAWU having anticipated this approach and met with most major retailers more than a year ago about the interests and likely designs that Walmart might have in acquiring business in South Africa. All of those major retailers except for Massmart agreed to meet with the Union, and all indicated that they were approached by Walmart and turned down the offer. Massmart on the other hand responded that media reports about Walmart's interests in them were mere speculation and refused to meet with SACCAWU. The Union at the time, went on record stating 'come what may, Walmart will set-up shop in the country'. It was also since that development that we observed a marked shift and increased hostility by many major retailers towards SACCAWU, engaging in aggressive rebranding, restructuring, re-engineering, repositioning culminating in retrenchments in most if not all cases ; and general witch-hunts on shop-floor leaders in many stores throughout the country. Suddenly disputes that would have been settled expediently and amicable in the past, now reached deadlocks compelling many workers at store levels to take strike action or contemplating to do so. Whilst some of our members did not initially understand this hardening of company attitudes, with whom we had long and fairly stable industrial relations, rapidly were changing so dramatically and aggressively towards the Union.

OUR BIGGER CONCERNS ABOUT THE WALMART BID TO TAKEVOER MASSMART

On Monday morning the world was greeted by the news of an offer by Walmart the worlds biggest retailer to buyout Massmart, at a a price that might look very tempting to shareholders and will definitely be so for top managers. The offer saw the value of Massmart shares jump with more than 10%. Surely this will appear very attractive to many shareholders. However, this offer and the likelihood of a deal has much more to do with simply what shareholders will get on accepting the offer.

For sometime now SACCAWU has not only anticipated this intention of Walmart but we have also actively participated in international campaigns against Walmart as one of the worst and stubbornly anti-union companies in the world. Thus, a takeover of Massmart by Walmart is a matter of serious concern to the SACCAWU.

Some facts about Walmart anti union activities:

• Walmart is a known anti-union company with training and toolkits for managers to keep the workplace union-free.