PORT ELIZABETH, May (ANA) - South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Tuesday, defended the introduction of a minimum wage of R20 an hour in South Africa, but at the same time conceded it was not a "living wage".
Addressing a Workers' Day rally in Port Elizabeth, Ramaphosa said government's social partners, including the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), agreed to begin at R20 per hour to ensure there is no negative effect on the economy and job creation.
"We have put in place mechanisms to ensure that as we increase the minimum wage over time, we do so in a way that meaningfully reduces poverty and inequality and contributes to the inclusive growth of our economy," he said.
"All social partners recognise that at its introduction, the national minimum wage will be less than what we consider to be a living wage. The social partners also agree that it must be our firm determination to move as quickly as possible to a living wage."
Cosatu's rival the South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) have threatened to make South Africa ungovernable if the minimum wage is introduced, likening the move to implementing "slave wages".
Saftu is also against new proposed labour laws limiting workers' right to strike.
Ramaphosa said government was not aiming to take strip workers of this right.
"We know that strikes are intended to inflict harm on the intransigent employer, but we also know that strikes inflict harm on the broader economy and indeed on workers themselves, who lose out on wages. Workers therefore only embark on strike action as a last resort, by way of a democratic decision, understanding that it demands a sacrifice from them and their families," he said.
"As a revolutionary Alliance, as a government, we will do nothing that will take that right away from workers."
- African News Agency (ANA)
