DA hits back at Cosatu, calling it an 'enemy of the unemployed'

The DA has accused labour federation Cosatu of being an enemy of unemployed South Africans after its rejection of the DA's proposed economic policy.

The party unveiled its policy last week, saying if it wins the May 29 elections the minimum wage will not be increased “any further” and its monetary value will be allowed to be “eroded” by inflation.

DA head of policy Matthew Cuthbert said the unemployment crisis was a result of the ANC, Cosatu and SACP alliance.

“Over the past 30 years, this unholy alliance has deliberately created a system of economic exclusion that has left South Africa with one of the highest unemployment rates in the world,” said Cuthbert.

“Due to the policies implemented by the alliance, the real monthly minimum wage for the 10-million people out of work is R0. A R0 minimum wage for 10-million people in South Africa is the true legacy of the ANC cronies in Cosatu.”

The DA's policy document states not increasing the minimum wage will “allow inflation to gradually erode its value, thereby progressively providing more opportunities for individuals to enter the labour market at wages they find acceptable”.

The proposal has been slammed by Cosatu, which said the DA was proving to be a party hostile to workers.

“A farmworker wanting to be able to buy a loaf of bread and pay for transport, buy electricity and feed his children — that they have a problem with. The DA hates workers and wants them to be treated like slaves,” claimed Cosatu parliamentary co-ordinator and acting national spokesperson Matthew Parks.

However, Cuthbert said: “South Africa’s unemployment crisis was deliberately engineered by the alliance. Instead of delivering 'jobs, jobs, jobs' as the ANC once pledged, the destructive laws enacted by the alliance over the past 30 years have deepened the insider-outsider stitch-up that characterises the South African economy.

“A small group of ANC and union cronies and cadres have benefited enormously from exclusionary practices such as cadre deployment, B-BBEE, race quotas and minimum wages while trapping nearly 10-million people in unemployment and 30-million people in grinding poverty.”

The DA is not shaken by dissent and criticism of its policy positions and vows to usher in a new era of job creation should it ascend to government, he said.

“Even as we uphold all fundamental protections for workers and employers as mandated by the constitution, this new government anchored by the DA will break down the walls of economic exclusion built by the ANC.

“We will do so by scrapping job-killing policies such as cadre deployment, expropriation without compensation and the nationalisation of the Reserve Bank. We will replace race-based B-BBEE that only benefits cadres connected to the ANC and Cosatu with means-tested empowerment that truly benefits the 30-million impoverished people who need it.”

The DA would scrap export tariffs and open state-owned entities such as Eskom and Transnet to private investment, Cuthbert said.

“We will give unemployed youth a leg up in the labour market through a youth employment opportunity certificate, which will allow holders to choose to opt out of laws that consign them to the R0 minimum wage created by the ANC.

“The DA’s youth employment opportunity certificate will enable unemployed young people to gain valuable work experience, earn a wage rather than be reliant on the state and allow them to move up the opportunity ladder.”

The DA's policies would protect those already employed by leaving the minimum wage at its current level, he added. “This will ensure those who are already employed will not see a decline in their wages, while more unemployed people will progressively be able to gain a foothold on the employment ladder.

“While the alliance between the ANC, Cosatu and SACP has abused its power to build an economy that only benefits its own connected cadres, the incoming new government anchored by the DA will break down the walls of exclusion to ensure a growing economy with fair access to jobs for all.”

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