Nedlac Executive Council adopts proposal on socio-economic protest action

Friday, February 28, 1997

The Nedlac Executive Council today agreed a mechanism for dealing with notifications of socio-economic protest action in terms of section 77 of the Labour Relations Act.

The proposal which was agreed today was developed in consultation with the Nedlac overall convenors for the labour, business and government constituencies. It comes in the wake of the first such notification received by Nedlac from the Food and Allied Workers'Union in the Western Cape, when it protested against fishing quotas and fishing policy onthe day of the opening of Parliament.

The proposed policy for dealing with protest action in future reads as follows:

• Nedlac should attempt to play a pro active role in dealing with protest action in terms of section 77 of the Labour Relations Act.
• Nedlac should have a procedure for convening a meeting of the parties in order to attempt to resolve the matter giving rise to the protest action. This will give guidance to what is meant by section 77 (1) (c) of the Act, which reads: "[T]he matter giving rise to the intended protest action has been considered by Nedlac or any other appropriate forum in which the parties concerned are able to participate in order to resolve the matter ...".
• Where the matter giving rise to the protest action is already on Nedlac's agenda, the Nedlac Executive Director shall convene a special meeting of the Management Committee, within the timeframes set out in section 77 of the Act.
• Where the matter giving rise to the protest action is not on the Nedlac agenda, the Executive Director shall convene a meeting of the parties in an attempt to resolve the matter within the 14-day period prescribed by the Act, or the matter shall be placed before the Management Committee in the event of a meeting of that structure taking place within the 14-day period.