Workplace democracy is generally understood as the application of democratic practices, such as voting, debate and participatory decisionmaking systems, to the workplace. In 2004 south africa celebrated ten years of democracy. Because blacks are still predominantly lowskilled, lowwage and dominating manual positions and whites occupying the highskilled, highpaid and managerial positions as it were during apartheid. Bottomup suggestions to get voice and representation 4647 6. The need for workplace democracy within the context of. Greater workplace democracy in south africas companies is both a moral and ethical issue. At one extreme lie small firms and nonprofits that have embraced pure, direct democracy. The dramatic changes in south africa since 1990 have been the outcome of a. The first part sets the background for the study and describes the development of postindependence labour relations and workplace democracy in africa. The commission on gender equality cooperates with other institutions set up under the constitution to promote human rights and democracy, including the south african human rights commission and the public protector. The dramatic changes in south africa since 1990 have been the outcome of a series of interconnected processes. Workplace democracy means allowing employees to have a strong voice in the direction and decisions within your organization. Workplace democracy is implemented in a variety of ways, dependent on the size, culture, and other variables of an organization. If this is true, then not only do republican defences of worker voice stand in need of revision, but also republican theory itself.
Greater workplace democracy in south africas companies is both a. The workplace is an important and strategic platform for combating discrimination in society more broadly. On the 2nd february 1990 president of south africa f. The internal communication function in a large south african organization was decentralized. Workplace democracy is the application of democracy in various forms examples include voting systems, debates, democratic structuring, due process, adversarial process, systems of appeal to the workplace. Improve workplace democracy democracy works foundation. The focus of this study is on south africa s transition to democracy. This is unwieldy in any but the smallest firms, since more time. Verdict on the advantages and disadvantages of democracy the right to vote is a consequence, not a primary cause, of a free social system, said ayn rand, and its value depends on the constitutional structure implementing and strictly delimiting the voters power. The media and perceptions of the good and the bad 50 7. Freedom, republicanism, and workplace democracy keith breen school of politics, international studies and philosophy, queens university, belfast, northern ireland, uk this paper explores the republican case for worker voice in economic enterprises based on the. Workers are the ones who lose their pay when they go on strike so they should be given a better opportunity to express. Finally, the workplace is exposed to market forces and political pressures over which employers and employees have little or no control.
Jane rarieya takes a closer look at gender equality in south africa and finds a discrepancy between men and women in labour participation, remuneration and advancement the past 20 years of democracy in south africa have seen significant strides being made to ensure that gender equality has become a societal. From workplace rights to constitutional rights in south africa. The present paper, entitled industrial relations in southern africa. Workers are the ones who lose their pay when they go on strike so they should be given a better opportunity to express their views, chamber president janine myburgh said in a statement. In south africa promoting diversity should, according to grant 2007, be approached as a social justice matter because it is bound to fail if peoples expectations of fairness and equity are not. Johannesburg the strike problem in the country can be solved by bringing more democracy into the workplace, the cape chamber of commerce said on friday.
Workplace democracy in sa will curb strikes 20140221. Sapa johannesburg the strike problem in the country can be solved by bringing more democracy into the workplace, the cape chamber of commerce said on friday. It has become increasingly popular in the early 21st century as businesses have encouraged participative management and emphasized employees as major assets. The role and challenges of trade unions in postapartheid south africa. Universal suffrage in a society in which the level of education and financial contribution is roughly uniform so that the voters pay for what they vote for missing in south africa the people who pay the taxes are effectively a disenfranchised minority while the voters elect people who steal the tax money. Awad ei mor 47 democracy and the individual will professor hieronim kubiak 57 democracy. The theory of indirect democracy or the liberal democratic view. Economic development south africa s economic policy makers should be proud of a number of accomplishments. In 1215, english nobles pressured king john of england to sign a document known as the magna carta, a key step on the road to constitutional democracy. The internal communication function in a large south african organization was decentralized to cost center level, where communication champions were democratically elected. It is also a document that ordinary south africans can look to for the protection of rights and for a vision of how our society should work. Twenty years of south african democracy freedom house.
For example, workplace democracy has a tradition in germany dating back to the weimar republic 19191933. Workplace democracy, worker participation, workplace freedom. A delicate balance and universality professor victor massuh 67 the main elements of democracy. The results are discussed in terms of history, theory, research and practice.
Hence, the primary contribution of this paper will be to provide a profile of poverty and inequality in south africa. Industrial democracy in south africas transition african journals. The achievement of democracy presupposes a genuine part nership between men and women in the conduct of the affairs of society in which they work in equality and complementarity, draw ing mutual enrichment from their differences. This is what inspired the researcher to conduct a study in order to. A state of democracy ensures that the processes by which. This research paper explores the concept of workplace democracy within the context of the transformation south africa is undertaking in its development from apartheid to a political democracy. Feb 24, 2014 monitor south africas progress towards gender equality in relation to international norms. Case studies of workplace democracy in south africa. This paper explores the relationship between workplace democracy, the improvement of internal communication and the implications for organizational transformation and competitive advantage. Workplace democracy for the 21st century towards a new agenda for employee voice and representation in canada a discussion paper authored by rafael gomez and juan gomez june, 2016 professor rafael gomez is director of the centre for industrial relations and human resources university of toronto. Greater workplace democracy may make south africas labour market more peaceful, productive and less racially charged.
More democracy in the workplace can go a long way towards making workers more engaged in their work so that they feel like what they do at work matters. In order to properly do so, a brief overview of legislation relevant to culture and religion in the workplace is first required. The need for workplace democracy within the context of south. Mar 16, 2009 the idea that the people are the foundation of democracy is repeated numerous times in south africas historic documents such as the freedom charter. In both, life is difficult for those who do not conform. The constitutional assembly was constituted with the task of drawing up a constitution to represent the interests and needs of all the people of south africa. Pdf transformation challenges in the south african. The constitution of south africa, 1996, has, since its adoption, provided the legal frame work upon which the new social and political order is founded. Greater workplace democracy in south africa s companies is both a moral and ethical issue. Drafted in 1955, the freedom charter provided a vision of a nonracial democratic south africa, in which the people would be the guiding voice of government. The books author, who is a wellknown international expert in the field of worker participation in europe, asia, and africa, served as its programme director. This research paper explores the concept of workplace democracy within the. Globally, companies are generally hierarchical and mostly run.
Understanding the democratic transition in south africa 3 administration of transfers to the poor and elderly. Understanding the democratic transition in south africa. Because black people are still predominantly lowskilled, lowwage and dominating manual positions with whites occupying the highskilled, highpaid and managerial positions as it were during apartheid, racist perceptions of black people as being inferior. Reasons to vote or continue to vote anc in 2014 6062 list of diagrams 1.
Generally, across the globe, companies are mostly run top down, hierarchical, the executives decide and the workers implement unquestioningly. The study also found that although the union has made significant gains in the workplace, it was still faced with many challenges. Applications of workplace democracy vary widely, from fullscale, direct democracy where everyones vote in the company essentially carries the same weight to smaller initiatives that may only apply to a specific. Cyril ramaphosa 73 democracy building in southeast asia professor juwono sudarsono 81. It is limited in the way that popular participation in government is infrequent and brief, being restricted to the act of voting every few years. Universal suffrage in a society in which the level of education and financial contribution is roughly uniform so that the voters pay for what they vote for missing in south africa the people who pay the taxes are effectively a disenfranchised minority while the voters elect people who steal. Workplace democracy is the application of democratic principles, such as voting, referenda and public debate, to the workplace. The anc constantly refers to democracy but what is it and do we have it. The advantages and disadvantages of democracy politics essay. In prior work inman and rubinfeld, 2012, we develop a formal model. This year heralds yet another milestone in the history of south africa commemoration of ten years of the constitution.
South african democracy spans two very different worlds. Trade unions and workplace democracy in africa, by gerard. In south africa, we remember and honour those who fought against racial discrimination, struggled for the rights of all workers during apartheid, and we celebrate the countrys democratic constitution of today. Modern south africa is a multiracial democracy, where the black african majority 792% of the population, sits alongside. South africa has adopted a form of representative democracy. Third, the national government was required to share national tax revenues with the provinces to finance assigned provincial services. Because black people are still predominantly lowskilled, lowwage and dominating manual positions with whites occupying the highskilled, highpaid and managerial positions as it were during apartheid, racist perceptions of black people as.
Pdf managing diversity in south africa harsheen patel. Heywood 2007 describes this form as a limited and indirect form of democracy. This donning of multiculturalism as a description of the postapartheid society can be linked to its acceptance of liberal democracy as the postapartheid regime, or the liberal moment that catapulted it into a society freed from the bonds segregation. Pdf in different political theories, democracy is not reduced to state institutions. The thinking behind workplace democracy at this time in germany was influenced primarily by liberal democracy. South africa now has a constitution that is admired around the world for its broad recognition of rights and also for its emphasis on public participation in democracy. Dec 16, 20 the anc constantly refers to democracy but what is it and do we have it. There are many ways to do this, some much more ambitious than others. For the ilo century project roundtable from workplace rights to constitutional rights in south africa, november 20 background in countries such as poland, chile and south africa, the ilos strong support for trade union rights helped in the fight for democracy and freedom. This dissertation examines these challenges and investigates ways and means of achieving successful and sustainable transformation within the workplace that reflects the broader. Labour relations in south africa have always been conflictual and currently, during south africa s transition to democracy, they continue to pose many challenges. This article investigates worker participation in three different south african case studies and argues that in the context of ongoing conflict and cooperation, participation should be combined with oppositional strategies if labour is going to have any meaningful say in the running of the workplace. Democracy greater workplace democracy could make south africa s labour market more peaceful, productive and less racially charged. In this paper i make instead a limited observation of africa s democratic process by focusing on the role of the media as a way of taking the body temperature of africa s democracy in the 1990s.
According to this tradition, workplace democracy is considered to be. The principle of democracy in south african constitutional law. However, since 1994 a series of questions that relate to their role in democratic south africa have remained unanswered. South africa south african road to democracy road to democracy 19901994 1990.
In south africa trade unions played a very important role to dismantle apartheid. The national budget deficit has shrunk from 8 percent to around 2 percent of gdp. Democracy, human rights and rule of law in south africa 10. By doing so, the king acknowledged he was bound by law, like others, and granted his subjects legal rights. Crisis of confidence in the south african police service 40 5. Transformation challenges in the south african workplace. Democracy is not yet able to change the social power inherited from the past, which limits its reach in both suburbs and. In one, people complain loudly but enjoy full democratic rights in the other, most remain unheard and battle for the right to speak. By doing so, the king acknowledged he was bound by law. The role and challenges of trade unions in postapartheid. Building workplace democracy in south africa pambazuka news.
Labour relations in south africa have always been conflictual and currently. It is argued in this thesis, that an analysis of the transition to democracy in south africa and the transformation of the con ict that prevailed in this divided society could generate new avenues for theorising about transitions to democracy in divided societies amidst con. Preface this publication is the fifth issue in the policy paper series of the ilo southern african multidisciplinary advisory team samat. For the first time south africa could call itself a democracy because everyone who was a citizen of south africa could vote in the elections.
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