The implications of restructuring and privatisation of State-Owned Enterprises ( SOEs) on employees in South Africa with specific reference to Spoornet

Abstract

Contemporary restructuring and privatization understanding, in both public policy and academic theoretical circles, espouses that these reforms are significant in ameliorating efficiency, effectiveness, greater competitiveness, profitability, financial sustainability and productivity of State-Owned Enterprises (SOE)s in South Africa: knowledge of this, can better foster policy reforms that are less pernicious to employees and their trade union formations. This thesis is based on research conducted at Spoornet in South Africa. It looks at the implications of restructuring and privatization of SOEs on employees in South Africa. It also focuses on the rational of restructuring and privatization of SOEs and the trade union response to restructuring and privatization of SOEs in South Africa, with specific references to Spoornet. Although literature has been written about privatization and restructuring of SOEs, little is known about its implication on employees of public railways and the specific response of railway-specific trade unions and their alternative constructive policy proposals for railway SOEs. This study utilized document analysis in the acquisition of information. The findings of this research, with regards to the rational for restructuring and privatization of SOEs in South Africa, shows that the South African government implemented restructuring and privatization reforms in their SOEs in a bid to ameliorate operational efficiency, effectiveness, competitiveness, profitability, financial sustainability, and enterprise productivity. The findings show that trade unions (COSATU and SATAWU, the main trade unions in that sector) resisted the restructuring and privatization of Spoornet and proposed an alternative policy proposal. The 'reconstruction of Spoornet' policy document which trade unions produced as an alternative proposal, depicted the effective role of labor stakeholders in decision-making on privatization and restructuring of Spoornet and the sterling trade union resistance to neoliberal privatization and restructuring policies in SOEs in South Africa.