Cape Town - The Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa) on Friday presented
its "building blocks" for a new employment growth path to the National
Planning Commission (NPC).
The document outlined the five
sections or building blocks the union federation believed would help
create a new employment growth path, Fedusa general secretary Dennis
George said after the meeting.
This document identified the
current problems affecting South Africans and offered both short- and
long-term recommendations. It was important to stress that the document
was a point of departure.
"We, as organised labour, need to take
hands with government and social partners in business to further
collaborate and refine strategies around South Africa's new growth
path," he said.
The NPC delegates - led by NPC deputy chairperson
Cyril Ramaphosa - stressed their gratitude to Fedusa for its input and
believed the document would significantly contribute to fulfilling their
mandate of establishing a critical view of South Africa and what the
country sought to achieve in the next 20 years.
Despite the
progress South Africa had made as a nation, Fedusa was glad the NPC had
prioritised addressing certain issues. These included poor school
outcomes, high corruption levels, low levels of competition, poverty,
inequality and unemployment - especially among the youth.
"Fedusa
is optimistic that though these processes of social dialogue and
consultation we can achieve consensus and a way forward. South Africa
needs good leaders that are accountable, who will spend our taxpayers'
money wisely, and most importantly leaders who will efficiently
implement this shared vision for a new growth path," George said.
Fedusa was looking forward to the release of the NPC draft national development plan for public comment in June this year.