Cosatu takes action over Zille

2009-06-01 20:08

Cape Town - Cosatu said on Monday that it was to declare a Nedlac-level dispute over Western Cape premier Helen Zille's male-dominated executive council.

Notice of the dispute would be filed on Wednesday, the Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu) Western Cape secretary Tony Ehrenreich said after a meeting with Zille.

It would be done under section 77 of the Labour Relations Act, which covers worker protest on socio-economic issues.

"That gives us the right to force the premier into a discussion convened by the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac)," Ehrenreich said.

"If there's no agreement and the due process has been followed, workers can go on a legally protected strike."

He said Zille had conceded at Monday's meeting that there was a problem with the lack of representivity of women in her executive.

"We have not been able to reach agreement because she insists on misleading the conversation on what happens with President Zuma's government and representivity issues there, instead of finding a solution here."

He said if Zille did not work with Cosatu at the Nedlac meeting to find solutions, there was a "real possibility" of protest action in the Western Cape.

Ehrenreich said Cosatu believed representivity was an important component of building the inclusive society that the Constitution spoke of.

- SAPA