Who is the lion, who is the elephant?

MOTELEBANE MOTELEBANE | Thursday June 3, 2010 00:00

The sheer mass of workers was impressive; although the collective force and power was quiet and calm but one saw and felt the potential for explosion, if the force and power were to be unleashed.

Comrade Hlabano, president of the Botswana Secondary Teachers Union (BOSETU) raised his hand and stabbed the air. Viva Babereki Viva! The hall vibrated as the workers responded.

Viva! Then Hlabano greeted members of each of the five trade unions, Bosetu, BLLAHWU, BTU, Manual Workers Union and BOPEU one after the other and members responded accordingly, with zeal and excitement.

But it was when he greeted members of the Manual Workers Union that the hall reverberated with a huge 'Viva! Comrade Hlabano' stabbed the air with his raised hand once again and said Viva Big Five Viva! The body of workers responded in one rising roar that filled the huge hall.

The Bosetu President then stated to the crowd, seemingly as a matter of fact, that the trade unions gathered there that afternoon were the Big Five.

The question that came to my mind was bigger than which trade unions?

The other question was, among the so-called big five, which trade union is the lion, which one is the elephant and so on. The attitude in the notion of the Big Five is all wrong. It is divisive and bound to further weaken an already weak labour movement. Comrade Hlabano was clearly advancing the cause for an establishment of a Federation of Public Sector Unions separate from the already existing Botswana Federation of Trade Unions.

The five public sector trade unions, BLLAHWU, Manual Workers Union, BOSETU, BTU and BOPEU who are pushing for the establishment of a second trade union federation are basing their reasons on a lie. The lie is that it will be a requirement that Trade Unions seating at the table with the employer in the Public Sector Bargaining Council should represent 33% of the Public Sector workforce and that since no one Trade Union has that membership, the unions are forced to form a federation so that their collective membership can give them the needed 33% that will unlock the bargaining council door.

However, that is not the position of the law. The 33% is needed only for recognition by the employer of a union in a particular industry as clearly stated in the Trade Unions and Employers' Organisation Act. All the Unions in question, except for Manual Workers Union that cut across the Public Service into the Para-statals, represent workers in specific sectors which may be called industries within the Public Service.

BLLAWHU represents workers in the Local Authorities which include land boards and clinics, BTU and BOPEU represent workers in the Teaching Service while BOPEU represent workers in the central government; and all these unions have gained recognition by the employer in accordance with the law.

The untruth that is being peddled by the so called 'Big Five' is further refuted by the Public Service Act of 2008 which recognizes the existence of sectors or if you like industries within the Public Service. Sections 54 and 55 of the Act 'establish sectoral bargaining councils which shall have jurisdiction in respect of matters that are specific to a sector e.g. teachers, employees of local authorities'.

 This, therefore, means that a specific trade union can represent the interests of its members at a specific sectoral bargaining council.Granted, that recognised Public Sector Trade Unions will need to collaborate and agree on what their demands should be, particularly with respect to wage increase, when they go to meet the employer at the Public Service Bargaining Council, but this does not warrant the establishment of a Federation. A structure to accommodate the need for collaboration by Public Sector Unions can be established within the Botswana Federation of Trade Unions.

In this way, the idea of a Public Sector Federation falls off and fragmentation of the labour movement and by extension of the working class is avoided. We should always be mindful of the fact that ours is a small population and economy and fragmentation of any form is detrimental to progress.

The idea of the big five is disruptive and bound to create conflict, not only within individual unions but also among the unions. This brings me to the question earlier posed. Who is the lion? The union that is at the top of the food chain?

 If you listen to Comrades from the Manual Workers Union; may it be Comrade Tsalaile on BTV's Matlho a Phage or Comrade Kgaoganang in the Multi-Purpose Hall of Matshekge Senior Secondary School, you will soon realise that the Union considers itself to be at the top of the food chain.

And BLLAHWU, being the smallest of the unions, whether represented by Comrade Mahumba on BTV's Matlho a Phage or its publicity secretary, Comrade Letshwao, in the Multi Purpose Hall of Matshekge Senior Secondary School, gives you the impression that it occupies the bottom of the food chain.

Comrade Vice President of BOPEU, Halala Bomme Halala! speaking from the same podium that Hlabano had ealier addressed the multitudes of workers was articulate in her presentation on the Public Service Act of 2008 which came into effect on the 1st of May 2010; yet at some point she said when referring to the state president; 'Mongwa mmu o re o gatileng' a direct translation would be 'The one who owns the soil on which we stand' For the words to come from a trade unionist who must debate over issues of who owns the means of production, distribution of resources, wage increases and so forth, it is an indication of an absence of political consciousness that is necessary to make a worker a good Trade Unionist.

Rather than chasing after ideas that will weaken the labour movement, the five unions should prepare a cadre of shop stewards who will effectively bargain for and defend the rights of members of their unions in the sectoral bargaining councils and on the shop floor.

The leaders of the five public service trade unions should look inwardly and ask themselves; individually that is, whether or not they have the necessary skills and understanding of political - economy that would make them effective and committed trade unionists who can proudly call themselves bastions of workers rights.

Simply put, they should ready themselves for the bargaining chamber where the employer will be driving a hard bargain using the finest stock of its technocrats; because the days of government benevolence are over.