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International Workers’ Day, also known as Labour Day in some places, is celebrated in about 80 countries. The point of marking the day is to highlight the gains that have been made by workers and the labour movement, and to put the spotlight on shortcomings that persist. In this special newsletter we feature some of the best read articles we’ve published on a range of labour related topics.
An area that requires urgent attention is proper training and skills development. Kenya is grappling with a skills gap in the mining and oil and gas sectors and there’s a lack of quality vocational training. Melba K. Wasunna writes that the country’s curricula must be modelled on global standards and students must be equipped with modern tools and materials to ensure a shift from theoretical to practical teaching. Another area of concern
is the fact that workers still face health risks. For example, in Tanzania a study found that many don’t use protective gear to guard against potential hearing loss. Israel Paul Nyarubeli explains why workers must learn about the dangers of noise exposure and get training to protect themselves.
The challenge facing South Africa is unemployment. Alan Hirsch explains why the industrial sector is key to job creation while Mike Rogan argues that South Africa needs to rethink the role of
the informal economy. Leila Patel explains how a national minimum wage could benefit young people to get jobs and encourage those who have given up trying to find work.
For her part Christine Jeske unpacks why work relationships are often a more significant factor than wages in people’s decisions to accept, keep or quit jobs and Moegammad Faeez Nackerdien and Derek Yu look at why there have been very few instances of people making successful, lasting transitions from informal to formal employment.
Finally, one of the iconic tracks celebrating workers is trumpeter Hugh Masekela’s haunting “Stimela”. Sociologist Andries Bezuidenhout writes that it offers a perfect opening to a conversation among students about the forces that modernised South Africa.
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