COSATU demands the investigation and deportation of all Chinese workers working illegally in this country   

26 January 2017

The Congress of South African Trade Unions is deeply angered and offended by reports that a Chinese State Company , CBMI Construction that was awarded a tender to do a R1,2 billion project at PPC’s Slurry plant in North West in 2015, was allowed to bring in about 242 workers in the country to work on the project. It is alleged that these workers have been working in this country since October 2015 and will work in this country on this project until 2018. The federation is calling on the Department of Labour to investigate this matter and take steps to correct this travesty.

We find this totally unacceptable that for a country with over 9, 2 million unemployed people, some companies are allowed to bring cheap labour from as far as Asia to work in this country. We also want to see the South African companies that have allowed this to happen to be held accountable.

It is this short-sightedness that is the source of our economic problems in this country. Many companies in this country are only looking after their narrow interests and are not bothered by the growing poverty and inequality that is starting to create social instability.

What is more disturbing about Chinese illegal workers is that they are not just economic refugees but they are company imported and sometimes state sponsored illegal workers.

This is going to create more economy unemployment and will result in more unemployed people depending on government for their livelihood, while the Chinese are repatriating their wages out of the country limiting the demand in the economy.

COSATU is worried that Chinese companies are allowed to get away with serious labour law violations in this country and our government is doing very little to protect the interests of workers and the local people in general.

Chinese companies have constantly ignored our regulations and have taken advantage of the deep well of credulity and servility that exists from our leaders in relation to China.  We are challenging our government to act decisively to confront the Chinese companies and close the loopholes that they are exploiting, and ultimately prove that they are not prepared to allow China to become this country’s new colonial overlord.

Issued by Sizwe Pamla, National Spokesperson, COSATU, 26 January 2017