BOPEU conference - an eye opener for the labour movement

Correspondent | Friday December 12, 2014 12:53

 

Selfish and narrow personal interests of leadership must give way to broader worker interest with objectives to improve worker welfare, ensure decent work, and inculcate quality service principles  through workers unity.

BOPEU leadership rose above the pre-2014 elections selfish and working class destructive agenda as perpetuated by leaders from three BOFEPUSU unions contrary to the  Federation and their unions’ (BOSETU; BLLAHWU & NAC&LGWU) resolution on the issue. BCP wishes to congratulate BOPEU for upholding and respecting worker democracy in denouncing and distancing themselves from this destructive agenda. Partisan politics within trade unions are destroying COSATU, with NUMSA being expelled for being pro-workers and AMCU gaining support over MWU for being pro -orkers. Congratulations, BOPEU for being visionary.

The pro-worker agenda in the BOPEU 2014 Conference is also manifested in publicly and transparently initiating worker unity through merging or working a relationship between BFTU & BOFEPUSU by putting the issue before members for discussion. BCP promotes worker democracy and unity within the labour movement given our recognition of trade unions as integral part of our economic and social development strategy (pages 18-19 of BCP manifesto). The unity of the workers in a capitalist economy  is a must as worker unity would loosen the worker’s chains with  one big voice and usher in decent work, living wages, better worker welfare and quality services to our people .

The Conference also exposed the attitude of the BDP towards workers through the speech given by President Ian Khama. Statements such as “because Bargaining Council is non-functional, if BOPEU leadership has issues to raise, my office is available to them all the time”, manifests the maintenance of BDP anti- social dialogue status quo which will worsen worker multiple challenges such as poor wages; job insecurity; unsafe working environment; limited social security; ineffective dispute resolution mechanisms and non existence of tripartite engagement in the post 2014 dispensation!

In congratulating BOPEU on the 2014 Conference, BCP also urges other unions to entrench worker democracy and unity through resolutions taken in constitutional meetings. Using democratic centralism for selfish interests of leaders is counter revolutionary and anti-principles of working class ideology. BCP, through its pro-worker’s policies presents itself as an alternative to BDP.

 

Goretetse Kekgonegile

BCP Shadow Minister of Labour