JOHANNESBURG Zimbabwean exiles are dragging down the basic rights of South African workers, according to Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) president, Zwelinzima Vavi (Pictured).
A staggering 4 192 million South Africans are now without work. Since the beginning of this year, 959 000 jobs have been lost. Addressing the National Congress for the first time, Vavi said many were mistaken in thinking that South Africa was a land of milk and honey and this was impacting badly on the locals.
Stats SAs Labour Force Survey revealed that the number of employed people fell by a staggering 484 000 – to 12 885 000 – in just one quarter. This increased the countrys official unemployment rate from 23.6 per cent in the second quarter of 2009 to 24.5 per cent in the third quarter. The influx of Zimbabweans means heightened competition for the few available posts.
COSATU said they had invited the Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Zuma to begin a conversation on how to address xenophobia and the streaming flow of immigrants under pressure of poverty.
“We need to ensure that we develop systems to ensure that we do not open the floodgates in a manner that simply worsens the squeeze in the townships and rural areas,” said Vavi.
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