EFF set to establish its own labour union, says Malema

Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema says his party is in the process of establishing its own trade union to address workers’ challenges.

Malema on Sunday said the labour union would draw from the successes of the Red Berets’ labour desk.

“We are having a labour desk because we are preparing to have an EFF union. The union of the EFF is inevitable, and that union will never sell workers out and will always be on the side of workers,” he said.

The EFF leader was speaking at the party’s International Workers’ Day rally in Middleburg, Mpumalanga.

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Malema said they were establishing the labour union because their labour desk, led by EFF MP Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi, was constantly being taken to court by companies who argued that it was not a registered trade union.

The EFF’s labour desk is well known for helping workers, regardless of their political affiliation, with grievances at their workplaces.

“The EFF union is coming, this is just a warm-up. Hlengiwe Mkhaliphi, the head of the labour desk, she is still warming up.

“We are preparing to do a union and not a Mickey Mouse union,” Malema said.

‘Give us those jobs’

Earlier, Malema complained that government was outsourcing services such as cleaning and catering to multinational companies like Bidvest, which he claimed, President Cyril Ramaphosa had a stake in.

He said instead of issuing these multimillion contracts to companies, government should hire South Africans who haven’t completed their matric.

“Why should you outsource the cutting of grass? all we need is the equipment to go around cutting grass.

“Give us those jobs, don’t give those jobs to Bidvest of Ramaphosa. Give them to us directly and employ us permanently.”

According to the EFF leader, citizens who have not completed their high school education were the victims of South Africa’s high levels of unemployment, poverty and inequality.

“We need to make sure that all those who don’t have matric, they’re the ones who get these jobs.

“Why? A lot of our people did not leave school because they’re dunderheads [stupid]. they left school because of the economic situation in their homes.”

He said hiring citizens who don’t matric would give them access to benefits like medical aid, pension funds and other benefits enjoyed by workers.

“We must not condemn them into permanent poverty.

“We must hire them as cleaners permanently so that they can register with Unisa and improve their qualification from being a cleaner to being a municipal manager,” Malema said.

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