2010

WORKERS’ LIVED

EXPERIENCES OF UNION

STRUCTURES

Clothing workers from Valhalla Park and Cape Town's clothing industry

Thesis submitted in partial requirement of completion of a Bachelor of Social Science

(Honours) Degree in Environmental and Geographical Sciences

Evan Blake

BLKEVA001

Supervisor: Shari Daya

University of Cape Town

18 October 2010

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PLAGIARISM DECLARATION

1. I know that plagiarism is wrong. Plagiarism is to use another‟s work and pretend that it is one‟s

own.

2. I have used the Harvard referencing system for citation and referencing. Each contribution to, and

quotation in, this assignment from the work(s) of other people has been attributed, and has been

cited and referenced.

3. This assignment is my own work.

4. I have not allowed, and will not allow, anyone to copy my work with the intention of passing it

off as his or her own work.

5. I acknowledge that copying someone else‟s assignment or essay, or part of it, is wrong, and

declare that this is my own work.

SIGNATURE: STUDENT NO.: BLKEVA001

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION…………….…………………………………………..……………………4

2. LITERATURE REVIEW…….…………...……………………………………………………5

2.1 The Union Renewal and Resilience Debate...................................................................................6

2.2 Union Resilience………………………..……………….……….….………………………….………..7

2.3 The Risk of Irrelevance: A Need of Renewal and Restructuring in Unions……………...……….8

2.4 Moving Beyond Theoretical Binaries……………….…..……………………………….……….…...9

3. METHODOLOGY…………………………………………………………………………...…9

4. NARRATIVES OF THE UNION’S SUPPORT…………………………………………….…11

4.1 Union Representatives' Understandings of Union Roles..............................................................11

4.2 Union Presence at Ground Level through Strike Action..............................................................13

4.3 Providence Fund and Union Benefits..........................................................................................14

5. NARRATIVES OF DISCONNECT BETWEEN WORKERS AND THE UNION................16

5.1 Retrenchments and Factory Closures: Under-Representation of Workers...................................16

5.2 Shop Stewards and Misrepresentation..........................................................................................18

6. IMAGINING THE UNION.........................................................................................................20

6.1 Community-Based Unionism........................................................................................................21

6.2 Extended Union Representation...................................................................................................22

7. CONCLUSION.............................................................................................................................23

8. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS............................................................................................................25

9. REFERENCES.............................................................................................................................26

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ABSTRACT South African industries have undergone drastic changes, with polices of

trade liberalisation reducing the ability of local industries to compete against increased

foreign imports. The clothing industry, particularly in Cape Town, has been severely

impacted by factory closures and retrenchments. Research conducted within Valhalla Park

through qualitative interviews with current and former clothing industry workers revealed

that participants perceive the regional clothing workers union as having an important role

in the changes facing the clothing industry. This understood role is complex. Participants

acknowledged the union’s support structures including benefits and strike action support as

important for worker representation however narratives of failure by the unions to represent

workers during retrenchment and on the shop floor were present. This research will explore

how these narratives of the union’s role in the daily lives of workers feeds into broader

theoretical debates on union resilience and renewal.

1. Introduction

South Africa‟s manufacturing industries have been negatively impacted in recent years by

institutions such as GEAR, introduced by the South African government in 1996to create a new

economic vision for the country (ESSET 2003). The policies implemented have been distinctly

neoliberal in nature. They include trade liberalisation policies agreed under the General Agreement

on Tariffs and Trade (GATTS) (Coetzee 2005). The clothing industry is one of numerous local

industries to have been negatively affected by these policies.The reduced protection on domestically

produced goods has resulted in reduced support of local products and loss of capacity for local

industries to remain competitive (Coetzee 2005; ESSET 2003; Van Der Westhuizen 2005). The

removal of tariffs on foreign imports has had additional impacts including an increase in foreign

imports and direct competition for locally produced goods (Coetzee 2005; ESSET 2003; Van Der

Westhuizen 2005). The increase in foreign imports and competition has had several knock-on

effects including industry-wide factory closures and retrenchments (Esset 2003). Cut, Make and

Trim (CMT)1 operations and other small home based clothing manufacturing operations have since

1� CMT enterprises are small to medium sized, informal to semi-formal cottage clothing industries. The proliferation of

these enterprises in the Western Cape and South Africa has been a result of deindustrialisation, an effect of South

Africa‟s global trade policies, resulting in the production of garments being subcontracted by customers to smaller

production units (Rogerson 2001; Van Der Westhuizen 2005). Such home based industries are not restricted to the

Western Cape, being present in other major South African urban areas including Johannesburg (Rogerson 2001). CMT

enterprises are not a unique South African phenomenon with such enterprises also located England (Evans and Smith

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become increasingly common in the Western Cape. The growth of these enterprises is

fundamentally changing the traditional structure of the clothing sector workplace from “a protected

work environment with regular wages, hours and social benefits to insecure employment,

unpredictable hours and wages without social security” (Van Der Westhuizen 2005:336). Recent

developments in the clothing sector including increased government support for local industries

may assist the clothing industry in remaining stable. Programs including the recently announced

Clothing and Textile Competiveness Program could assist factories in meeting production quotas,

upgrading and restructuring factories and increasing partnerships with government (Department of

Trade and Industry 2010).

These regional scale events impact upon factory workers at the community level, with industry

retrenchments creating poverty shocks and unstable living conditions for workers (Coetzee 2005;

Esset 2003). Valhalla Park is one place where the effects of larger scale policies and events upon

community members are visible. Many Valhalla Park residents have been negatively impacted by

shifts in the clothing industry; retrenchments, factory liquidations and unfair dismissals are common

experiences. The personal narratives of these workers provide insight into the lived experiences of

the broad changes in the industry, and formed the core methodology for this research. Through

interviews with participants regarding their experiences in the clothing industry, a number of key

themes emerged and shaped the development of the research project.The aim of this paper is to

explore (a) the ways in which clothing industry workers in Valhalla Park make sense of the role of

SACTWU during work in the textile industry and post-retrenchment, and (b) to locate these

narratives within the theoretical debates on union resilience and renewal. This aim is achieved

through the following research questions:

how did participants understand the support received from the union?

how and when did these support structures fail workers?

how did workers imagine improvements to the union?

2. Literature Review

The roles of trade and labour unions are constantly changing with globalisation having dramatic

impacts upon workplace structures and employment relations (Carr and Chen 2001). Unions have

2006) and Fiji (Buxley 2005).

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adopted different methods to deal with these changes, including opposing globalisation (Bieler

2007). Such an approach is founded on the premise that the interests of workers will be violated

with local economies being damaged by the inflation brought about by global trade reform

(Schiavone 2007). Unions may make use of tripartite arrangements between themselves, the state

and corporates to negotiate and bargain on policy concerning neoliberal trade reforms (Bieler 2007;

Faribrother 2000). Grassroots action may also be used through collaboration with civil society and

social movements to provide ground level resistance to global trade reform (Molina 2006;

Schiavone 2007).

2.1 The Union Renewal and Resilience Debate: Understanding Unions and Workplace Change

Within this broader context is a debate concerning how unions establish themselves and represent

workers in an era of globalised production and trade. The union resilience debate is concerned with

the traditional structures and organisational hierarchies of unions and how such structures create

capacity to support workers (Darlington 1997; Painter 1994; Martin et al 1993; Massey 1994;

McBride 2004). The union renewal debate argues that fundamental grassroots changes are required

within union structures for workers to feel that unions are still pertinent to their workplace struggles

(Fairbrother 2000; Stroud and Fairbrother 2008; Wills 2001). Most of the research in this area has

been conducted in England, examining how the effects on union membership following

conservative neoliberal political changes led to the power of labour shifting from collective

organisations such as unions, towards employers (Fairbrother 2000). The debate however remains

relevant in present South African contexts where neoliberal economic policies and their resultant

global trade restructuring have shifted the power away from unions through a process that Payne

(2001:389) describes as

both a concerted and organized effort by international capital and multinational enterprises

to install new working practices, but also contradictory moves towards an increasingly

„disorganized‟ capitalism, in which it is increasingly difficult to achieve common standards

on issues such as employment rights, health and safety, and education and training.

The union renewal and resilience debate is connected with other discussions as to the approach

unions should adopt. One approach is whether unions should remain as bureaucratic forms of

collective organisation concerned with more regional service based issues such as bargaining on

political and policy matters with focus on industry wide wage negotiations (Bacon and Blyton

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2004; Bieler 2007; Fairbrother 2000). A second approach is whether unions should shift towards a

bottom-up approach with a focus on how local workplaces are structured and the manner in which

power relations play out at local levels (Fairbrother 2000; Wills 2001). This is described by

Fairbrother (2000:14) as unions playing a “critical part in the unfolding pattern of restructuring

between labour and capital”.

2.2 Union Resilience

Union resilience is visible through traditional areas of union activity and strongly maintained

membership, or „heartland‟ areas. These „heartlands‟ do not suggest that union resilience is

occurring uniformly throughout regions, but rather that at a time when union membership may be

dwindling, concentrated areas of union activity are present that demonstrate where and how union

structures can be felt by and benefit workers (Martin et al 1993; Massey 1994; Painter 1994).

Although these heartland areas do indeed reveal instances of union resilience, unions should not

afford to remain complacent in these areas. For unions to recuperate lost membership beyond

„heartlands‟ and to promote resilience further, a change in focus towards recognising the importance

of how local workplace structures are organised may be necessary (Martin et al 1993).

Structures and programmes within unions can help to promote resilience. The shop steward

structure within unions is argued to be an effective system that demonstrates how unions can

actively relate to workers, using a structure that is typically bureaucratic and hierarchical in nature

to promote workplace and union democracy at shop floor level (McBride 2004; Darlington 1997).

These bureaucratic tendencies of union structures are argued by union renewal supporters to be a

contributing factor to the loss of relevance in unions felt by workers at the shop floor level (Wills

2001). A survey by Hall et al (2000) of Australian unions indicates that such assumptions do not

take into account the ways in which trends may differ between areas. Survey data used by Hall

(2000) suggests that increases in union bureaucracy or the presence of top-down structures do not

negatively impact upon workplace democracy. Bureaucratic structures may even enhance resilience

through increased union representation for workers brought about by an increase in officials (Hall et

al 2000). Lifelong learning for workers through union programmes may also promote union

resilience; Payne (2001a, 2001b) and Stroud and Fairbrother (2008) explain that programmes that

aim to provide workers with skill training that is implemented from the top-down can help to

protect workers from unexpected changes in the workplace.

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2.3 The Risk of Irrelevance: A Need of Renewal and Restructuring in Unions

There is concern that the current bureaucratic and overly administrative nature of unions could have

repercussions for worker representation at local levels (Morris and Willman 1994). Concerns

regarding the potential for a disconnect between narrowly focused union programmes and structures

and the ground level experiences and interests of workers has led to discussion for a need for

grassroots shift and structural renewal for unions (Fairbrother 2000; Hurd 1998; Martin et al 1993;

Wills 2001). Stroud and Fairbrother (2008) discuss this renewal as an opportunity for unions to find

new ways to deal with old dilemmas, with Payne (2001a:390) describing restructuring as a potential

for unions to “adopt more socially inclusive policies, and indeed seek to use their political influence

to attempt to alter the balance of risk in their members' favour”. Traditional methods of dealing with

such issues do not necessarily view the socio-economic needs of workers holistically with the result

being union structures that tend to have narrow or shallow approaches. Narrow focuses result in

union structures and programmes such as lifelong learning becoming systems to 'service' members,

that do not necessarily support workers in their own situated work experiences (Stroud and

Fairbrother 2008). With workplace structures being shaped by changes in industries, it becomes

increasingly necessary for unions to find new ways to adapt within these changing economies. In a

case study of the high-tech manufacturing industries of Silicon Valley, Benner (2000) examines how

union structures have become small and highly localised, using decentralised forms of workplace

learning and social networks in the workplace to impart general and specific skills in workers that

can provide stability and support.

Theories such as community unionism aim to provide holistic support to union members that is

missing in current forms of unionism (Wills 2001). Alliances formed between unions and civil

society groups allow for workers who are marginalised, such as those engaged in informal

employment, in minorities or within small workplaces that often do not receive representation, to be

reached through widespread grassroots mobilisation and civil society involvement (Gallin 2001;

Wills 2001). A grass-roots community focus allows for unions to build support through mobilisation

for addressing socio-economic and political issues at broader levels that extend beyond the

community (Wills 2001). Union structures have historically been patriarchal despite the growth in

women-labour based industries. Indeed, the interests of women workers have often been neglected

in unions and as a result, union membership among women has remained low (Kirton and Healy

1999). Union renewal and the resultant restructuring can allow for increased women representation

within the union, contributing to creating an 'organising culture' and increased union activism

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(Kirton and Healy 1999). The increased proliferation of online communications has led to the

internet becoming an invaluable tool for unions to create linkages between the global, regional and

local levels, allowing unions to proliferate especially at grassroots levels (Hodkinson 2001;

Diamond and Freeman 2002).

2.4 Moving Beyond Theoretical Binaries

Research on resilience and renewal in unions should be studied in the context of the factors and

circumstances that shape specific case studies. Fairbrother (2000) explains that union resilience and

renewal can be placed on a continuum with unions actively working towards a state of restructuring

to better serve workers. Top-down and bottom-up perspectives or a combination of both

perspectives could be used as potential strategies by unions to bargain and negotiate changes at the

scales of the workplace level, the state and the global, with a single approach held by unions being

neither right nor wrong (Heery 2002). Martin et al‟s (1993) discussion highlights how case studies

of unions and workplaces can cross the two debates; while traditional „heartland‟ areas of England

do demonstrate union resilience with active membership, there is undoubtedly a need for unions to

be proactive in appealing to new members have not been reached before. McBride‟s (2004) case

studies similarly reveal this crossing of binaries; the bureaucratic shop steward structures in his

study generate strong resilience for the union. The committed and proactive nature of the stewards

and the union bureaucracy have however generated strong forms of workplace democracy and shop

floor level participation in the union (McBride 2004). This workplace democracy is described by

McBride (2004) as important in promoting forms of grassroots unionism that are typically regarded

as union renewal.

3. Methodology

This research engages with the politics of knowledge production as much as with the politics of

union involvement, taking particular interest in the narratives of research participants and valuing

such narratives as central to shaping the research process and producing academic knowledge. This

research aims for the co-construction of knowledge between researcher and research participants,

using workers' everyday experiences to help create knowledge. Such knowledge not only

contributes to academic discourse but can also assist people in understanding their own experiences.

The work of Rose (1997), Ross (2010), Oldfield (2007) and Nagar (2002, 2006), on research values

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and the politics of knowledge production, has been particularly valuable in helping me develop this

approach.

Using an epistemology that values the lived experiences of participants, I began to conduct

fieldwork without a fixed framework. My aim was to refrain from imposing my own narratives or

ideas upon the research, allowing the narrative threads from the experiences of participants to

determine what issues would become research. Conversations held with Valhalla Park residents in

previous research helped to shape the initial research concept. Discussions with people who had

worked in the clothing industry helped to define how retrenchments in the clothing industry in the

Western Cape have had significant impacts upon the daily lives of people in Valhalla Park.

Over the course of a month I conducted approximately thirty interviews in Valhalla Park.

Participants were mostly women who had been retrenched from the clothing industry and were

unemployed, working as casual labour, operating small informal home-based businesses or working

at CMT enterprises. Initial access to the community was through the assistance of a community

leader and a research assistant with years of experience in clothing industry shop floor and union

politics. Their assistance was essential in helping me become known in the community. The

partnership with my field assistant, Francis, in particular helped a great deal in allowing me to feel

comfortable within the community. Francis regularly introduced me to her friends and family as

well as to research participants, explaining the objectives of my research and providing regular

advice and guidance on topics that came up during interviews. Working daily with Francis helped to

set a foundation for my epistemology, her continued support contributed greatly to the research.

These events included the daily bus trip into the community and talking to Valhalla Park residents

on the ride, discussions with curious research participants about my family and my home and

watching and discussing 7de Laan, a local television soap drama. These shared experiences with

residents all contributed to creating bonds and trust. As fieldwork progressed, community members

became increasingly open and approachable. Residents began to approach me and my assistant on

the streets asking to be interviewed and have their experiences in the clothing industry recorded.

Alongside using lists of contacts built from my assistant and initial participants, requests from

participants to be involved in the research became an important method in locating people for

interviews.

The narrative epistemology of this project allowed certain threads to emerge from people‟s

narratives around the clothing industry; what experiences were commonly viewed as important to

shaping their lives. The interviews were unstructured with spontaneous questions being asked to

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generate initial conversation or to further explore topics of interest raised by participants during the

interview. This method of interviewing participants allowed people to talk openly about various

experiences and stories. Interviews with participants revealed a common narrative thread, namely

the role of the union in the lives of workers during employment and after retrenchment. Various

themes emerged from these narratives including the role of shop stewards in the lives of workers,

the unions' role in the process of retrenchment, union led strikes, and the benefits provided by the

union during and after employment, and during employment within CMTs. All these issues were the

avenues through which participants understood and expressed the role of the union in their lives.

These various issues that emerged in the narratives and union resilience and renewal literature

shaped the aim and the research questions used for this research. The research questions that will be

addressed in the following sections include

how did participants understand the support received from the union?

how and when did these support structures fail workers?

how did workers imagine improvements to the union?

4. Narratives of the Union's Support: Structures and Benefits That Assist Workers

Research participants discussed the various ways in which the union was present in their lives. This

presence was evident to participants through the roles that were expected of the union, including

shop floor representation through shop stewards, benefits from the union that assist workers and

worker solidarity that the union can provide through strike action.

4.1 Union Representatives' Understandings of Union Roles

There has been a noticeable difference in how this role was understood between participants who

had only worked on the shop floor and those who had also worked as shop stewards. Shop stewards

interviewed, such as Aunty Ruby (interview, Ruby, retired shop steward, Ruby's home in Valhalla

Park, 9 July 2010), described what they thought the role of the union was through their own

experiences representing workers.

This man was an ironer. There was a manager, 'Mr Bigstuff'. The worker slapped him. I

represented him as a steward. They asked, why did you smack him? I told him, that smack

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was from everyone, that manager makes life hard for everyone. The man wasn't fired, just

given a warning and told next time to keep his hands in his pockets... I fight for workers,

make it worth the workers while to work overtime. Not double, but triple pay! I go to the

canteen and tell the workers “you have to work overtime”, “ag but it‟s a holiday”, “yes, but

you'll get triple pay!” The next day, everyone worked till 3pm.The workers came to me, said

it‟s the first time a shop steward has asked the management to put something on the table.

Aunty Ruby's experience of what the role of the union is expected to be is based on her time served

as a shop steward. Assisting workers in dismissal hearings, defending worker rights and being

proactive in helping workers receive better pay from factory management all require an intimate

knowledge of the union‟s structures and roles. The role of the union for Ruby is found within the

shop steward structure and the way in which the union interfaces with workers at the shop floor

level. Another former shop steward, my assistant Francis (interview, Francis, retrenched machinist

and former shop steward, Martha's home in Valhalla Park, 5 August 2010), discussed the union in

terms of the structures it has in place to support workers;

If the case was that you were unfairly dismissed, union will see, always rule that the worker

is right…. If there is any closure, there must be short time. First, must be a rotating thing, if

you paid three days, I get paid three days, Marie gets paid three days.... Stewards and

officials must be able to look, have information disclosure and sit and look through the

company books... Still companies phoning the union asking for thirty machinists. Workers

can go to the union and check for work; machinists, driver, whatever. Union then phones

those companies and say if they got a person with that and that... For elderly people who

don‟t want to go back to work; to go to the day hospital is such trouble but they give so

much in the fund, so they can make use of the panel doctors.

From years of service as a shop steward in the union, Francis had gained a considerable amount of

knowledge on how the union operated, being well aware of what structures were in place within the

union to support workers including the shop steward structures and benefits available to workers

after retrenchment. Francis' knowledge of union structures formed her understanding of the union

and the support in place for workers through such structures. These narratives from participants

who had been involved with the union lend support to arguments concerning resilience through

union structures made by academics, including McBride's (2004:138) suggestion that the

...shop steward organisation is durable and effective in terms of their role at the workplace.

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There is evidence to suggest that the shop stewards ... are fully accountable to their

membership in terms of information reported back to the workforce after negotiations with

management.

4.2 Union Presence at Ground Level through Strike Action

Other participants who were workers but not shop stewards viewed the role of the union not

through its organisational structures but through the ways that the union was experienced more

tangibly at the shop floor and at home. An example of this tangible union presence is through union

led strike action. Two former clothing industry workers, Poppy (interview, Poppy, former machinist,

Poppy's home in Valhalla Park, 15 July 2010) and Jessica (interview, Jessica, retired machinist,

verandah of Jessica's home and tuckshop, 29 July 2010), told me of their experiences during strike

action;

At Cape Underwear, mad house there. We stand on the streets, singing and striking. In the

canteen there were strikes. All part of the struggle for what? For a better working wage! Toyi

toyi! Tracksuits, jeans, shorts on, get ready! We always look after each other. This was my

enjoyment when I worked. Ons a lekker kaap toe! Wil julle saam gaan? echoes down the

corridors, everybody starts singing, all the managers on line, waiting, watching.

1998, we had the biggest strike. We were the main factory, we striked for about a month. We

were on strike for R25, it was a lot of effort for such a small amount but we stood together.

We were happy with the strike, we were comrades together, a totally united front. We also

sacrificed a lot, end of the day it was paid out and we were back to being a happy family.

Other participants shared similar experiences during strike action. They recollected such memories

fondly and explained in detail the various actions taken by workers and the union in rallying

together to ensure fair wages. Strike action was expressed as a way in which workers felt the union

had been proactive in representing their interests and having created solidarity and support at the

factory floor level.

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4.3 Providence Fund and Union Benefits

Strike action along with shop stewards are some of the ways that the support of the union was felt

by workers. Benefits received from union membership and the providence fund managed by the

union were also described by participants as important sources of union support. The providence

fund in particular was brought up in many conversations concerning how participants managed to

support their families post retrenchment. The providence fund was managed by SACTWU and

administered by the Industrial Council. Shop steward contacts explained that the union had to be

proactive in ensuring companies pay in a portion of the workers‟ salaries towards the

Unemployment and Injury Fund (UIF) as well as the providence fund towards which the union also

contributed. This providence fund could then be accessed by a worker after retrenchment as a lump

sum payment. Research participants described in various ways how the providence fund assisted

post retrenchment, some participants used the providence fund for start up capital to set up a small

informal home based business such as a tuck shop while others used the amount to sustain a

livelihood until further employment could be found. Some of those interviewed such as Karlien

(interview, Karlien, retrenched machinist, Karlien's home in Valhalla Park, 14 July 2010) discussed

how the providence fund did not always provide enough money to support a family;

I‟m not working. I received my providence fund, took the full package but it‟s not enough to

live off. There‟s no pension, only disability. I receive papers at SASSA [the South African

state social service association], fill in forms, only now the money isn‟t enough

Although the amount in the providence was viewed by some as not being an adequate amount, what

was given was viewed as helpful by participants. Macey (interview, Macey, former machinist,

Macey's home in Valhalla Park, 14 July 2010) explained how she was strategic with claiming her

providence fund, employing a strategy to maximise the amount she could claim;

I claimed my providence fund last April, if you take it out at one time you get like a thirty

percent bonus… but I carried on working. The boss gives some and the union gives some. It

gets interest. I was clever; I still got more while working while taking the money out.

The union provided benefits for workers that extend beyond the management of the providence

fund. Aunty Ruby (interview, Ruby, retired shop steward, Ruby's home in Valhalla Park, 9 July

2010) detailed the various ways that the union benefited her and other workers;

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If a family member dies, you can take your certificate and get money from the union

towards a funeral... There are benefits for the family; the sick fund. Family members up to

eighteen, used to be twenty-one, can be treated for free... Good things of the union, my

foster son is also on my book, he can be treated... You can take a form by the union, for the

first year at university or college. First year is paid out straight, if she studies further then

that also gets paid. You get a bursary from SANCTWU. Valhalla Park is under privileged yet

still doctors and lawyers can come out of this place. Sergeants in the police force. From the

underprivileged we take our children further.

The sick fund was a benefit commonly discussed by other participants. Karlien (interview, Karlien,

retrenched machinist, Karlien's home in Valhalla Park, 14 July 2010) described her access to union

administered healthcare after her retrenchment; “I still make use of the sick benefits from the union,

I have a letter saying I can still use the sick benefits.” The medical benefits provided by the union

extended beyond retirement and retrenchment and allowed people who were marginalised to access

adequate health care in instances where state provided healthcare was difficult to access. In contrast,

the bursaries for tertiary education offered by SACTWU were not mentioned often by participants.

SACTWU (2010a) state that all “SACTWU members, their husbands or wives, their children and

legally adopted children, as well as staff members can apply for a bursary”. Despite the availability

of this benefit to all members, it was not a benefit that forms part of the union role for many

participants. The reason for this could be that participants may have been retrenched or left the

industry before their children finished high school. Aunty Ruby and another community member

known to have received a bursary for her child accessed this union benefit sometime prior to their

retirement from the industry. For others workers who had joined the industry in recent years,

retrenchments, factory closures, liquidations and difficult working conditions that led to decisions to

leave the industry may have prevented access to bursary benefits.

From the experiences and stories told it is clear that the union does have a presence in people's lives

in various ways. For the average worker it is most apparent in immediate benefits and the

providence fund that assists post-retrenchment. For workers who were involved in the union, the

role of the union is understood and remembered through the various structures put in place to

support workers, including the shop steward structures. As the conversation with Francis revealed,

there are systems in place for the union to provide protection and assistance to workers post-

retrenchment. These structures could lend credence to an argument that the union may remain

resilient if benefits do actively support members. The reality of these union structures and benefits

is that not everyone may be able to access the benefits and support offered. The following section

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will discuss how people have felt that the union structures have not necessarily benefited all

workers equally. Participants narrating experiences of having fallen in between the gaps of the

union support structures are quite common, displaying potential need for forms of restructuring.

5. Narratives of Disconnect Between Workers and the Union

Alongside participants explaining what they experienced the role of the union to be, many also

recounted experiences of how the union has failed to work or represent them. The experiences of

union misrepresentation or lack of representation was common in the narratives, with experiences

including unions failing to support workers during factory closures and negative experiences with

shop stewards.

5.1 Retrenchments and Factory Closures: Under-Representation of Workers

Factory closures, liquidations and retrenchments were a particularly sensitive topic for participants

with several participants being unwilling to discuss their experiences of factory closure in detail, the

experience clearly being traumatic and upsetting. Other participants used the interviews as an

opportunity to vent anger over the situation, discussing their outrage towards 'fly-by-night factory'

owners they had worked for and the union they felt had failed to stop such individuals and

reimbursing lost wages and payment. A prominent community leader in Valhalla Park, Martha

(interview, Martha, community leader and former shop steward, Martha's home in Valhalla Park, 14

July 2010), told of her own family's experience with factory closures and the union;

My daughter went to work for a smaller factory, union supported, but the factory closed.

They find out the boss didn‟t pay in the UIF money although the money was deducting…

there were wage issues, the father [factory owner] got killed and it got bad to worse. The son

took over and although production is flowing he is crying, saying people don‟t pay him for

his work, says seams aren‟t right, work is being sent back, he lied! He was in debt and he

closed down… We took all the girls and went to the union; person [union official] at the

union knew them [the factory owner and the family], they were high at church, made a lot of

empty promises about getting the money back. To this day, not a cent. That person said she

will work on their nerves; see that all the girls get their money. To this day, nothing.

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Factory closures were particularly hard on workers as not only was a source of employment and

income lost but wages, overtime or holiday pay that was amassed while working with the business

was lost. The anger towards the union was directed at the lack of protection offered against such

factory closures Jessica (interview, Jessica, retrenched machinist, verandah of Jessica's home and

tuckshop, 29 July 2010) discussed experiences her and fellow colleagues have had with the union

failing to assist retrenched workers;

Sometimes the union, say a small factory closes, union says they‟ll investigate. It‟ll take

years! When there‟s closures and liquidations workers go expecting something, money. They

get nothing or it takes too long. The union can help with some things, don‟t help with others.

While participants blamed their experiences on union representatives who lacked commitment to

help workers, it was also felt that the issue was with the union itself. The union was perceived as

lacking the fundamental capacity needed to monitor companies that were closing down, liquidating

or retrenching workers. My research assistant, Francis (interview, Francis, retrenched machinist and

former shop steward, Martha's home in Valhalla Park, 5 August 2010), commented on participants'

reactions towards the union's perceived failure to provide support following a factory closure;

If a company is liquidating, it‟s hard for the union. Liquidators sell everything, there's no

money for the workers. The union struggles. Then the guy reopens under a new factory

under the wife‟s name. That‟s why the workers get angry, they don‟t understand this.

Despite the possibility of workers not understanding the difficulties unions face in trying to support

workers, the narratives of workers on their feelings and experiences of the absence of the union

remains important. Through their study of workplace learning, Stroud and Fairbrother (2008:232)

discuss similar disparities between workers and the union explaining that

[The] approach [taken] by trade unions has largely been one of servicing members, rather

than developing an active engagement with workplace learning practices in an active and

involved way... we argue that union capacity is shaped in relation to the structural

circumstances in which unions operate.

Workers in Stroud and Fairbrother's (2008) study experienced a disparity through union lifelong

learning programmes whereas participants in Valhalla Park felt a clear disparity between the

18

structures the union had established to support and protect workers from factory closure and

retrenchments, and how these structures fail to be relatable to workers on the shop floor. The

disparities present between workers and unions lead Stroud and Fairbrother (2008:233) to argue

that;

Union leaderships are thus not in a position to articulate the interests of members who

clearly worry about the future, but who struggle to define their learning needs precisely and

in focused ways. The result is that the steel union leaderships tend to view workplace

learning as an additional and narrowly defined objective rather than as core to members‟

interests and concerns

SACTWU may not view the protection of workers from retrenchment and factory closure in narrow

terms and as an objective that needs to be addressed. The experiences of participants reveal that

support structures put in place by union leaders are not addressing how workers feel they need to be

represented and supported during factory closure and retrenchment.

5.2 Shop Stewards and Misrepresentation

Along with factory closures, participants also described the various ways in which they felt shop

stewards failed to serve their interests. The role of the shop steward is to act as the intermediary

between workers and the union, becoming the key means in which workers interface with the union

on a daily level and ensuring workers are represented and supported at the ground level. Some

participants suggested that this role is not being met, with participants having described a distinct

lack of faith in their shop stewards. General conversations between participants revealed the degree

of mistrust people have towards stewards. A discussion between Francis and Martha (general

conversation, Francis and Martha, Martha's home, 22 July 2010) revealed details concerning shop

floor politics with shop stewards. Martha discussed with Francis how some stewards could become

“too friendly” with factory owners and management. She continued to discuss incidents of stewards

who are kept in management's 'good books' to get larger personal loans or better privileges;

“workers normally get say a R1000 loan with conditions, friendly shop stewards can get up to

R5000. No conditions. Workers lose confidence in their stewards.” This lack of faith in stewards

was observed first hand during field work. A couple of instances included people currently

employed in clothing factories approaching Francis for assistance with warnings issued by factory

management, asking for advice how to approach management and the union to rectify the situation.

19

Francis explained that people feel that they cannot trust the shop stewards in their factories to give

them proper advice, workers may prefer to approach people within their community for assistance

even though these individuals are no longer involved in the union and the clothing industry.

Such lack of faith has serious implications for work place democracy. In his case studies of shop

steward structures in Tyneside, McBride (2004:139) describes the shop steward structure as a

source of “collective negotiation and decision making” and thus become the very essence of

workplace democracy in unions, with this democracy seen in “the two way interaction between the

representatives and their members with many of the workers articulating their grievances and

attempting to influence the stewards on issues they perceived were a sense of injustice”. A lack of

trust in shop stewards is a lack of trust in the very democratic structures of the union. The lack of

trust in shop steward structure by participants may not necessarily be due to the personal mistrust in

their shop stewards but due to personal dilemmas that workers feel shop stewards cannot support.

Conversations between participants revealed examples of such personal dilemmas including

incidents of female workers abused at home and absent from work as a result. Participants

discussed how many of these women would rather be dismissed or receive a warning than approach

a steward or upper management for assistance for fear of embarrassment. Francis and her friend,

Jessica (interview, Jessica, retrenched machinist, verandah of Jessica's home and tuckshop, 29 July

2010) discussed such a situation;

Francis: Get a lot of abused women, how the heck can I go to work when both my eyes

blue?

Jessica: Ja, can‟t go work there then, lots of gossip in the factories, become the center of

attention.

Francis: Klarina‟s sister‟s child had an abusive husband, examiner at Cape Underwear,

never knew that she was abused, wore glasses to hide it. In companies things spread like

fire. She was shot by her husband… So many workers with problems, but people don‟t feel

freely to speak, so much gossip, its how people are.

This may not be a failure on behalf of the shop steward structure it reveals potential gaps in the

union's support structure. With the shop steward structure viewed as unreliable and untrustworthy in

its current form by workers there are serious implications for the legitimacy of union democracy.

For other participants, the union has failed to provide access to the post-retirement and

retrenchment support structures that are in place. Gina (interview, Gina, retrenched factory clerk,

20

Gina's home in Valhalla Park, 19 July 2010), a currently unemployed former clothing industry

worker, described her difficulties since she left the industry;

I‟m qualified, give me a fabric shop and I‟ll run it A to Z… If they see your CVs, see your

age… say goodbye to that job... I worked for twenty two years, who cares for me now? But

you? Ja, no work for clerks... Even when you sick, when I was still working, we had a book.

Could go see a doctor, now that I‟m old I got no money. I sit at home and get sick, don‟t

have money for a private doctor, I have to go see a day clinic. If I go to the doctor at the day

clinic and make an appointment, its six months time! I got nothing now. You know, I still got

my sick fund fund book; I‟m still clinging to my book... Went on supervisor training at the

union. In the end it means nothing

Although the union does have various structures in place to provide support for workers post-

retrenchment and retirement, as explored in the previous section with narratives of what union

structures are in place to benefit workers, there is an issue of who can access these benefits and

structures. Despite the presence of union support structures that can assist former workers in finding

new jobs or providing continued health care services, not all workers have access to these services

or know that such services exist. During the conversation with Gina it became clear she was not

aware of any support structures from the union that she could still access, she expressed that such

support would assist greatly. These narratives reveal that union structures are not reaching

participants who are in dire need of support. Such a lack of awareness of union support structures

and lack of connection with the union could be due to the union structures being top-down in nature

which tend to be ineffective at locating marginalised and vulnerable groups (Wills 2001).

6. Imagining the Union

While participants narrated how they thought the union failed to represent their interests, further

conversations revealed the ways in which they felt the union could better serve their interests. These

narratives are important in further understanding how the resilience and renewal debates apply to

participants' understandings of SACTWU's role in their lives. Narratives regarding participants'

imaginings of an improved union can provide the necessary grassroots view on what the

organisational structure of the union should become and what workers themselves describe as

necessary to be supported.

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6.1 Community-Based Unionism

On several occasions while moving through the community during fieldwork or after conversations

with participants, people approached my field assistant to ask for assistance on work or union

related matters. Discussions between Francis and other shop stewards revealed that this was

common for them too. General discussions with Francis during the course of fieldwork concerning

why people would approach her highlighted how the 'informal' shop steward assistance she

provides at a community level has become an important source of support for factory workers.

Francis continued that women workers especially feel more comfortable with approaching

someone they know within the community in instances where they feel they cannot receive

assistance from formal union structures. Such occurrences parallel what Wills (2001) describes as a

need for community based unionism, where flatter union organisation structures will create capacity

within unions for supporting communities to create partnerships that provide more holistic forms of

assistance to workers at the community level. The creation of relationships between unions and

strong community members is viewed as central to creating strong forms of community unionism.

Wills (2001:466) explains that;

Finding allies in the community is seen as a way to reach... „hard to organize‟ groups and to

service their needs in appropriate ways, using local community facilities for out-reach work

and advice sessions

These hard to organise groups often include women, minorities and groups marginalised within

society (Wills 2001). Workers that sought out the assistance of Francis and other former shop

stewards as well participants who felt misrepresented by the union would undoubtedly benefit from

such a union structure. Although forms of community unionism are being informally practised to

some degree through former shop stewards, these informal support structures are not well defined

or well spread enough to provide adequate support to workers in the community. Increased support

from SACTWU at the local level through forms of community unionism could create the capacity

to legitimise these informal support structures and provide support to otherwise marginalised

workers.

Increased grassroots union support would also assist current and former workers with counselling

and support. Gina (interview, Gina, retrenched factory clerk, Gina's home in Valhalla Park, 19 July

22

2010) described an urgent need for HIV/AIDS counselling to learn how to support infected

relatives, yet since retrenchment she has become cut off from union support structures and has since

been unable to find assistance. SACTWU's (2010b) Worker Health Program website declares that

HIV/AIDS counselling and support is provided to all union members. SACTWU does not however

discuss if former union members are also covered by this support blanket. Gina's experience

suggests that such support is not offered to people who have left the industry. Community based

unionism would make locating and targeting individuals who have become marginalised through

retrenchment possible, providing assistance at local levels where people can more easily access

services and support.

6.2 Extended Union Representation

Other than describing a tangible need for a union that is more accessible at a community level,

participants also described a need for union representation in different workplaces they have

become involved in. For many of the participants, having worked in a CMT is a common

experience. Although informal to semi-informal in nature, CMTs have become an important source

of employment for retrenched and dismissed clothing industry workers. The relative flexible

working days and closer proximity to home makes CMTs an attractive option to workers, however

the smaller size of the operations and the smaller workforce has resulted in a lack of formal

recognition by unions. Martha (interview, Martha, community leader and former shop steward,

Martha's home in Valhalla Park, 14 July 2010) discussed her own experience in CMTs and the result

of the lack of formal union recognition;

I went to work for other CMTs. Was a big loss, no way they could pay you for holidays. You

know you will be short paid end of the week. Wasn‟t done the union way. When you finish

you just end off with weeks wages. Nothing else. This is how I ended off, these long years

were wasted. My wages and that‟s it, no providence fund. Some didn‟t pay me, there‟s no

where you can go to place a complaint, there‟s no union. It‟s dangerous!

Other participants who had worked in CMTs had similar experiences to that of Martha; workers

being exploited, underpaid and left with insecure employment. Sarina (interview, Sarina, former

machinist, Sarina's home and CMT business, 9 July 2010), a small CMT operator trying to

formalise her business, openly discussed how the informal nature of the CMT business makes it

difficult for owners to ensure that they have enough orders to keep workers employed in the

23

operation and paid on time, she felt that union support could assist workers in such conditions,

stating “This is where unions should help. People would rather work nearby to their home, CMTs

offer this.”

CMT workers have become a workforce that is under-represented in the South African clothing

industry. Recognising the importance of changing local workforce structures is vital for unions to

remain relevant to workers (Gallin 2001; Martin et al 1993). Wills (2001:467) discusses the risk of

under-representation of industries;

when so many of workers are employed in workplaces without any form of trade union

presence, often on part-time and/or temporary contracts, with small numbers of colleagues,

this workplace-based model of trade unionism is completely inappropriate to meeting their

needs. The very structure and geography of trade unionism neglects those workers who are

not in membership and fails to give unions the leverage they need to intervene in and

beyond any workplace.

It is no different with SACTWU and Western Cape CMTs. Shifts within the Western Cape clothing

industry have resulted in CMTs becoming increasingly important. The narratives of participants

suggest that SACTWU does not have the structures in place to address the needs of CMT workers.

Restructuring the union to create a more horizontally and flatter structured organisation would place

a focus on local workplace structures such as CMTs and give greater representation for workers

involved in non-traditional workplaces within Cape Town's clothing industry.

7. Conclusion

The narratives of participants revealed a disparity between what SACTWU aims to achieve for

workers and the lived experience of workers.The stories of people have shown that there is indeed

resilience in SACTWU generated through structures and benefits that assist workers. This resilience

is promoted through shop stewards who are committed to the union and workers they represent.

They allow workers to interface with the union on the factory floor, providing strong and

unquestioning support to workers. Workers also explained how strike action became important in

creating a sense of solidarity and fraternity, not only between workers from different factories but

also between workers and the union. The providence fund managed by the union was understood as

24

a visible indication of the union supporting workers' livelihoods. These union support structures and

plans have allowed workers to feel the presence of SACTWU in their daily lives, essentially

ensuring union remain relevant.

Despite these indications of resilience, participants often spoke of how they have felt that they have

been misrepresented or let down by the union. Stories of people feeling failed by the lack of union

support during factory closures and having mistrust in shop steward union representatives revealed

gaps in the union's support structures. These narratives suggest that perhaps union renewal is

required within SACTWU to make the union more approachable and present at the community

level. An argument for forms of union renewal in SACTWU from the Valhalla Park case study is

also strengthened by people's imaginings of how the union could better serve their interests.

Instances of workers seeking assistance within the community indicates a need for unions to

recognise the potential for more direct worker support at the community level rather than

exclusively through traditional union structures. The narratives of worker's experiences in CMTs

also provides insight into where workers feel the union could become more involved in workplace

structures. CMTs are rising in importance as a source of employment, changing the workplace

structure of Cape Town's clothing industry. The union has not adapted to these workplace shifts,

failing to represent CMT workers despite their need for support.

From these narrative threads I would argue that SACTWU requires some form of union renewal

and restructuring, participants have expressed a tangible disconnect between themselves and the

union, with this disconnect manifesting as feelings of misrepresentation and frustration in workers.

The way forward it would seem is for SACTWU to reconsider its role; does it remain concerned

exclusively with wage negotiations and the political aspects of the industry, retaining its current top-

down structure, or does it become a trade union that shifts focus towards its workers and the

communities in which workers live and operate. Although such a shift requires the union to make

changes in its organisational structures, it would need to be considered if such changes are the

suitable way forward in the changing economic, social and political conditions that affect the

Western Cape clothing industry.

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8. Acknowledgements

I want to thank my supervisor, Shari Daya, for going beyond the call of duty expected of a

supervisor in providing support and advice throughout the honours journey. Thank you Shari, your

help made the research process an enjoyable experience, and not a chore. Your knowledge helped to

shape the conceptual underpinnings of this research, without such advice and mentorship my thesis

would be hollow.

Special thanks must be given to Sophie Oldfield for providing guidance that proved essential to

conducting fieldwork and forming a relationship with the community of Valhalla Park. This project

would not have been possible without Sophie‟s assistance in arranging funding from the NRF;

thank you Sophie for electing me to receive funding from the „Body Politics Project‟ (gun

no.2072796) that allowed for the depth and length of research.

To the people of Valhalla Park, I cannot begin to describe the gratitude I have for the way you

welcomed me into the community. Thank you to the United Civic Front and the women of Valhalla

Park for meeting me at the bus stop, making sure I felt comfortable and ensuring I left each day

with a smile; many afternoons of watching Bold and the Beautiful and 7de Laan were enjoyed in

your company. To my participants, thank you for spending your time with me. Your stories and

narratives have formed the core of this research. Completing this research would have been

impossible without your involvement. To my research assistant and colleague, thank you for your

partnership in fieldwork. Introducing me to your contacts, to your friends and family, explaining

union structures and systems and providing interpretation are some of the forms of support offered

by my colleague that were invaluable to conducting fieldwork.

Finally, to my family; thank you for your support. Although many a province away, the love and

care of my parents always felt near. Special thanks must be given to my brother for adopting a

mentor role this year, providing guidance in a year defined by change and new beginnings.

26

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