South African Trade Unions in a Time of Adjustment

Abstract

DURING THE LATE apartheid era, the South African economy was both weakened by sanctions and disinvestment, and sheltered by the then government's protection ist policies. Democratization has brought with it both the lifting of embargos, and the phasing out of tariff barriers and decentralization incentives, which offered substantial state subsidies for industries located near the former bantustans. This has posed certain challenges for organized labour. On the one hand, the South African trade union movement retains a significant following and organizational vitality in a decade associated with union decline, and enjoys an unprecedented degree of political influence on account of its alliance with the mling African National Congress (ANC). On the other hand, it has had to contend with a dimin ishing pool of potential recruits as a result of widespread retrenchments and restructuring, particularly in core areas ofthe economy such as the metal and mining industries. Moreover, the unions face all the difficulties of attempting to develop a coherent policy agenda that not only ameliorates, but also presents genuinely viable alternatives to, the process of adjustment. In other words, the challenge is to retain the integrity of a union voice whilst continuing to compromise where necessary with both state and capital.