News

Philip Jennings, the General Secretary of UNI Global Union is in South Africa to meet with affiliates who are already looking ahead enthusiastically to the 4^th UNI World Congress which will be held in Cape Town in 2014. Jennings also held meetings with UNI Africa and affiliates in preparation for the Appeal Court ruling which will establish whether the Walmart-Massmart merger can go ahead and under what conditions.



During an interview with CNBC Africa in Johannesburg, Jennings noted that reports are emerging that the Cambridge Food supermarket chain, a subsidiary of Massmart, is employing the majority of staff through three labour brokers.



Jennings said, “If these reports are confirmed this should be a further wake up call to the South African administration that the quality jobs the Massmart-Walmart merger promises will only come into affect if the conditions applied to the deal are stringent and watertight.…We need a global redesign of the retail investment model where multinationals invest not just in the stores but in the local supply chain and local jobs.”



Jennings added that the conditions that Walmart had agreed to during the Competition Tribunal had not gone nearly far enough and would not protect South Africa’s workforce. He said that the Cambridge Food’s apparent use of the discredited labour broker system was more proof that further protection was needed and showed that the conditions on Walmart’s entry had to be much stricter.



The South Africa government should join hands with the government in India to coordinate how to handle the global retail system being imported by Walmart and others into their countries.



Jennings said the government has put its plans to introduce multi-brand FDI on hold after protests from small retailers, unions and even members of its own government. South Africa should be equally concerned and the reported labour practices at Cambridge Food underline the reason why.”



In partnership with SACCAWU, SACTWU and COSATU, UNI Global Union took up the fight against Walmart’s invasion here in South Africa. UNI played a pivotal role in ensuring that its affiliate SACCAWU had the necessary information to lay before the Competition Tribunal with the provision of ten expert affidavits from overseas.



UNI is also challenging Walmart in India where the government is considering whether to allow foreign direct investment (FDI) into Indian’s huge retail market. During a meeting in Delhi last week with government officials UNI urged that India learn from South Africa’s experiences with Walmart and suggested the two countries cooperate and exchange information on the issue. UNI proposed that, if allowed at all, the investment should be attached to strict conditions, which guarantee the right to organize and protections for small retailers and local suppliers.



Also during the CNBC Africa interview, Jennings addressed the global crisis and said that the G20 had to come up a with an effective plan for jobs and tackle the crisis head on as it had in the immediate aftermath of the 2008 crisis. He underlined that the situation is now critical with 225 million people jobless, one in three of the work force living in poverty or unemployed and one in two on vulnerable contracts.



Jennings said it was time for company bosses to have a reality check. “In conversation with a top CEO recently he told me that his board expected a rate of return of 17%. This is unsustainable and its jobs which are being cut. It should not be about who gets the dividends it should be about the people and jobs.”



Watch the full interview with Philip Jennings on CNBC Africa here:



Job Creation Strategies for Global Economic Recover



http://www.abndigital.com/page/multimedia/video/beyond-markets/1168561-Job-Creation-Strategies-For-Global-Economic-Recovery