SACTWU settles Clothing Industry wage negotiations

Date: 11 December 2020
Media Release: immediate
SACTWU settles Clothing Industry wage negotiations

The COSATU-affiliated Southern African Clothing & Textile Workers’ Union (SACTWU) has settled its 2020 round of wage negotiations in the clothing industry.
Approximately 70 000 clothing workers in South Africa are expected to benefit from this collective agreement.

The negotiations and union mandating process was extremely difficult this year, mainly because of the restrictive but necessary lockdown conditions.
These wage negotiations commenced on 6 August 2020, and was entirely conducted on a virtual platform under the auspices of the National Bargaining Council for the Clothing Manufacturing Industry.
Following a deadlock, the union declared a formal dispute on 10 September. A total of 5 rounds of Conciliation meetings took place subsequently, when the parties attempted to resolve the dispute.
The dispute was finally resolved when a collective agreement was ratified at a Special Council meeting of the clothing bargaining council, which meeting was held on Tuesday this week.

The new collective agreement was concluded between SACTWU (the union), and the following 3 employer associations: Apparel & Textile Association of South Africa (ATASA), South African Apparel Association (SAAA) and the Transvaal Clothing Manufacturers Association (TCMA).
The construct of the now agreed-to wage increase is as follows:
November 2020 Consumer Price Index (CPI) plus 0.5% with effect from 1st March 2021, and a further increase of November 2020 CPI plus 1% with effect from 1st September 2021.
On Wednesday this week, STATS SA announced the November 2020 CPI level to be at 3.2%.
This means that the final settlement provides for a wage increase of 3.7% with effect from 1st March 2021, and a further 4.2% increase with effect from 1st September 2021.
In addition, the agreement provides for an additional day’s wages as part of the annual leave payments, payable in December this year, to all clothing industry employees.

The agreement will now be submitted to the Department of Employment & Labour, for gazettal and extension to cover all clothing employers and workers in the whole of the South Africa.
For us, employer wage freeze proposals due to the COVID-19 pandemic is not an option at all. We are determined to always and without fear or favour, pursue our members’ living wage demands.
We are pleased that a mutually satisfactory settlement has now been struck in the clothing industry, under extremely difficult economic conditions.

Issued by
André Kriel
SACTWU
GENERAL SECRETARY

If further comments or information are required, please contact SACTWU 1st National Organising Secretary and Clothing Sector Chief Negotiator, Bonita Loubser, on cell number 082 800 7142.