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SADTU division could see new union formed Natasha Marrian, Business Day, Johannesburg, 12 September 2014 A BREAKAWAY from the South African Democratic Teachers' Union (SADTU) is on the cards and a new union could take shape after SADTU's national conference next month. The expulsion of SADTU president Thobile Ntola has divided the union, upsetting members in his home province and power base, the Eastern Cape. Nkosana Dolopi.jpg Congress of South African Trade Union (COSATU) affiliates have been hobbled by internal divisions mirroring the infighting in the federation. A ceasefire was called by COSATU's top brass earlier this year after they agreed to allow the African National Congress (ANC), a COSATU ally, to broker a possible peace deal between warring factions. SADTU deputy general secretary Nkosana Dolopi confirmed knowledge of plans by disgruntled SADTU members to form an alternative union for public service workers. The group is set to attempt to reinstate Mr Ntola at the union's upcoming national congress on October 2. Whether the group pushes ahead with the split depends on its success in reinstating Mr Ntola. It is understood, however, that the numbers do not favour the former president and any attempt to have him reinstated at the congress may not succeed. Four sources have confirmed the splinter union will be opened to all public sector workers. Zwelinzima Vavi Mr Ntola's woes at SADTU are linked to the broader divisions in COSATU. He is a close ally of general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi. He was suspended last year for allowing Mr Vavi a platform to address workers in the Eastern Cape, after the COSATU boss was suspended in connection with an affair with a junior employee. Mr Ntola was then expelled in May over a string of corruption allegations. SADTU in the Eastern Cape has maintained that the move against Mr Ntola was political. Eastern Cape SADTU secretary Mncekeleli Ndongeni on Thursday said branches would be participating in next month's conference. As the highest decision-making body of the union, the conference would be the final arbiter on the Ntola matter, he said. "We know that our members have expressed disgust at the expulsion of our president." Mr Dolopi said while the upcoming congress would to be "lively with debate", it was unlikely that there would be any issues which would "destabilise" the gathering. "We had nine provincial congresses. All went smoothly and were uncontested. We think that the national conference will be the same," he said. The union leadership was aware of attempts by disgruntled members to form an alternative public sector union. It would be "unfortunate" if workers "allowed people to divide them", he said. "Obviously, there are those who are misleading people, but we have seen in the past that such intentions don't last. People are just using Ntola as an excuse to leave the union." Expelled leaders of the union have been linked to the new formation. Mr Ntola could not be reached for confirmation on whether he is involved. Mr Dolopi said a splinter union from SADTU would be a "regression", as workers were strongest when they were united. Nearly at an end The ANC's intervention in the COSATU fight is nearly at an end after it met the National Union of Metalworkers of SA on Wednesday. NUMSA is one of the last unions the party met to discuss the running battles which could still see the federation splitting. NUMSA has decided to call on COSATU to split from the alliance with the ANC and to set up a movement for socialism, possibly to contest future elections. COSATU president Sdumo Dlamini on Thursday said once the ANC's intervention had concluded, the federation would call a special leadership meeting to consider the party's recommendations. From: http://www.bdlive.co.za/national/labour/2014/09/12/sadtu-division-could-see- new-union-formed -- -- You are subscribed. This footer can help you. Please POST your comments to [email protected] or reply to this message. You can visit the group WEB SITE at http://groups.google.com/group/yclsa-eom-forum for different delivery options, pages, files and membership. To UNSUBSCRIBE, please email [email protected] . You don't have to put anything in the "Subject:" field. You don't have to put anything in the message part. All you have to do is to send an e-mail to this address (repeat): [email protected] . --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "YCLSA Discussion Forum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
