The role and challenges of trade unions in post-apartheid South Africa: the case of the National Education Health and Allied Workers Union

Abstract

In South Africa trade unions played a very important role to dismantle apartheid. However, since 1994 a series of questions that relate to their role in democratic South Africa have remained unanswered. This is what inspired the researcher to conduct a study in order to examine the role and challenges of trade unions in post-apartheid South Africa. In an attempt to gather data bearing on the subject of this investigation, the provincial office of NEHAWU in Mafikeng was visited and focus group interviews were held with the provincial officials of the union. Through these interviews the study found that NEHAWU advocates for a model of trade unionism which officials described as 'transformative unionism'. According to the respondents, this form of unionism advocates the transformation of the South Africa society to socialism. The study also found that although the union has made significant gains in the workplace, it was still faced with many challenges. Some of the major issues mentioned include lack of transformation in certain sectors where the union organizes employees, casualization of jobs, outsourcing of services, deployment of union leaders outside the union, corruption in the workplace, threat posed by rival unions and many other issues. The study concludes by arguing that the conditions are not yet conducive for trade unions to lead the struggle for a socialist transformation in South Africa. The researcher attributes this largely to the contradictions that continue to affect the alliance and the inability of unions to exert their influence in the alliance on major policy issues. The findings revealed that the alliance is characterized by the presence of two camps, whose goals and objectives are not the same. These divisions within the alliance work against any commitment that these leaders might have in the struggle. Finally, the study recommends that unions in South Africa will need to review their relationship with political parties if they are to realize their long term goals and objectives.