Trade unions traditionally have played an important role promoting and safeguarding their members' interests. In this country, before the advent of democracy, unions took on an added political burden in the struggle against apartheid. Of course in the process they conflated capitalism and racial oppression - a stance which even today complicates industrial bargaining, as unions pursue an ideological agenda long abandoned by the ANC.
Unions remain an important part of civil society in a democracy, but they are not the elected government. They do not have the mandate to make or implement economic and social policy. That civil servants - especially teachers, nurses and the police - deserve better pay is not in dispute. They provide an essential service in society and should be suitably rewarded for their contribution. Many teachers and nurses are leaving the country for greener pastures abroad. Such a depletion of essential skills SA can ill afford.
The public, therefore, has no quarrel with the claims for better pay for nurses and teachers. The issue is partly the scale of increase demanded (a steep 12%, compared with the private-sector settlement range of 6%-7,5% this year). But far more important is how increases should be apportioned in the best interests of the particular sector as well as of the country.
Unions that support the narrow interests of their members often do so at the expense of the broader society. Teachers' union Sadtu, for example, is blocking measures to fix the biggest problem in education - the poor quality of our teachers - by opposing pay differentiation based on performance, skills, ability, training, demand or subject specialisation. Regardless of need, it opposes the hiring of foreign teachers and after-hours training, and generally epitomises the lowest common denominator.
Performance-related remuneration is an essential part of state initiatives to reform SA' s acutely dysfunctional school system - in which only 2 500 candidates out of 450 000 who write matric now qualify to study maths- and science-related disciplines such as engineering and medicine at university.
These are essential skills, required to drive economic growth and development, to reduce SA's chronic levels of poverty and unemployment. As from next year, all matric candidates will be required to write either maths or maths literacy. SA simply does not have the teachers for this, or the time to train new ones. Government is therefore rightly determined to improve the quality of teaching in these subjects, and is justified in its plans to import maths teachers from as far afield as India, Tunisia and Zimbabwe in the short term.
In the medium term, there is merit in the proposal by business for a programme aimed at reskilling teachers. This would entail testing teachers' ability to pass the exams for which they are preparing their pupils, to ensure they have the basic skills. Such reskilling programmes have been successfully implemented in other countries, for example Peru. It's no secret that SA has far too many under qualified teachers. They serve no cause but their own protected employment, and wreak untold damage on the students in their care. Those who can improve their skills should be assisted to do so and those who cannot should find other jobs.
SA cannot afford the mediocre education system that Sadtu's sectional interests would perpetuate, nor can it acquiesce in the actions of a National Education, Health & Allied Workers Union which put the lives of the sick in greater danger.
Given their history and relationship with the ruling party, the power of the unions affiliated to Cosatu is enhanced by the seat they have at the top table, courtesy of the tripartite alliance. This puts the ministers affected by strikes in a difficult position. But unusually tough talk by the public services minister and the deputy president over the strike suggests a line may have been crossed. It will be good for SA if the strike hastens the break-up of the alliance. It will force unions to focus on shop-floor issues, and allow government to govern.
