CWAO Radio
Buwa Basebetsi

26 September 2024

Weekly Update: Mr Sweet Protest - Injured Workers

The SWF has been informed that several casual workers have been seriously injured over the past week in the Mister Sweet factory after Mister Sweet bosses put pressure on them to handle dangerous and unfamiliar machinery.

Mister Sweet has also allegedly breached s17 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act by continuing to keep the factory running using untrained casual workers while failing to make sure that they have health and safety officers.

Last week a casual worker who had no experience or training was using the cutter. It was not moving sweets and because the worker had not been trained on what to do, he tried to push the sweets under the cutter and that is how his finger was cut off, workers say.

Workers also report that casuals are operating the cooker, which can be dangerous, without training.

20 September 2024

Weekly Update: The Mister Sweet strike is in its fourth week.

The Mister Sweet strike is in its fourth week and is taking its toll on striking workers. From the 19th of August workers have been demanding R19 500 as their basic salary, but their employer is sticking to their 7% increase across the board. This is despite Mister Sweet being owned by Premier FMCG which last year declared just over a 23% increase in revenue.

13 September 2024

Weekly Update: Mr Sweet Protest - Labour Court victory

The Simunye Workers Forum union has defeated Mister Sweet's attempts to bring an interdict against the strike at its factory in Johannesburg which began on 19 August.

Johannesburg Labour Court judge J Daniels recently ruled that the employer was unable to show any link between the alleged violence they complained of and the strikers. Therefore the company was not entitled to interdict the strike or the strikers.

Judge Daniels also acknowledged that the strike was a lawful and protected strike.

06 September 2024

Weekly Update: Mr Sweet Protest - Actions of Solidarity

24 August 2024

Weekly Update: On the picket line with striking workers from Mister Sweet

We bring you the latest developments on the current protest taking place at Mr Sweet in Wadeville.

We hear directly from the workers on the ground, and get an overview on the reasons behind the strike.

14 August 2024

Weekly Update: An Analysis of Asylum Seekers

Two people from Diepsloot, Gauteng speak out.

Buwa Basebetsi has carried out this analysis with the help of an article by Kimberly Mutandiro published in GroundUp

12 August 2024

Weekly Update: Olympic Games 2024

In this episode of Buwa Basebetsi Updates we look at the Olympics Games, focusing on Israel's participation. We carry out this analysis with the help of an article by Hassan Lorgat published in the Media Review Network website.

12 August 2024

Weekly Update: Strike Barometer

In this episode of Buwa Basebetsi Updates we look at the results of the CWAO's online Strike Barometer.

The Strike Barometer is produced independently, not from government numbers, but from information supplied by workers and unions. You can log on here whenever you like to get the latest strike information: https://statistics.cwao.org.za/

If you know of any strikes that we have not recorded on the Barometer, please contact us on 082 812 1934.

11 July 2024

Weekly Update: School Registration Assistance

The Casual Workers Advice Office, Simunye Workers Forum and Simunye Women Workers Forum know the challenges community members face in day-to-day life and we are aware that things are difficult economically for the masses. We therefore invite parents/guardians whose children will be attending Grade 1 and Grade 8 in 2025 to use the CWAO computer centre in Germiston to register their children's applications online.

10 May 2024

Know Your Rights Series - Episode 13: Part 2 UIF Know Your Rights

In this episode of Know Your Rights, In this episode of Know Your Rights, we continue with the focus on the Unemployment Insurance Fund, better known as UIF. We break down and explain what it is, and the conditions that exist around it. Also providing you with the remedies workers have it their employer's go against the guidelines set out in this right.

03 May 2024

Know Your Rights Series - Episode 13: Part 1 UIF

In this episode of Know Your Rights, we focus on the Unemployment Insurance Fund, better known as UIF. We break down and explain what it is, and the conditions that exist around it. Also providing you with the remedies workers have it their employer's go against the guidelines set out in this right.

30 April 2024

Weekly Update: The Casual Workers' Advice Office Strike Barometer for 2023

There were 83 strikes in 2023, a slight decrease over the 86 strikes we documented in 2022. This continues the pattern of relatively low number of strikes annually since the 165 strikes of 2018. Forty one of the 83 strikes occurred in the public sector. This figure excludes at least seven strikes at hospitals, universities, private companies contracted by municipalities and institutions such as Productivity SA and the State Information Technology Agency. Fifty of the strikes (60.24%) were wildcat and 33 (40.2%) were protected strikes. Seventeen workplace related actions were recorded in addition to the 83 strikes.

26 April 2024

Weekly Update: Organising efforts by Casual Workers Advice Office and the Household Index

This week in Buwa Basebetsi Update we look at the organising efforts by Cassual Workers Advice Office and our weekly household Index in our Economic Observer which looks at how the economy affects the working class purse.

24 April 2024

Know Your Rights Series - Episode 12: Minimum Wage

In this episode of Know Your Rights, we focus on the New Minimum Wage. We break down and explain what it is, and the conditions that exist around it. Also providing you with the remedies workers have it their employer's go against the guidelines set out in this right.

19 April 2024

Weekly Update: a look at the upcoming CCMA campaign and our food basket index

In Buwa Basebetsi Updates this week, Casual Workers Advice Office and Simunye Workers Forum announce their upcoming CCMA campaign where they will avail themselves at the various offices in and around Johannesburg for any workers who might be in need of assistance.