Johannesburg - Disgruntled Liberated Metalworkers Union of SA (Limusa) leaders are heading to the Labour Court to fight the registrar of labour relations’ decision to approve its merger with the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM).
Former Limusa KwaZulu Natal deputy chairperson Mancane Sibaya, its former national treasurer Sello Rapao and former first deputy president, Reginald Baatjies, will square off against the Department of Employment and Labour’s registrar of labour relations Lehlohonolo Molefe and the NUM at the Labour Court in February next year to set aside the decision to amalgamate the union.
Molefe approved the amalgamation of Limusa and the NUM in November last year. As a result, Limusa, whose membership stood at about 8 200 in 2018, and NUM amalgamated to form a new union, which will retain the name NUM.
Limusa was established after breaking away from the National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) in 2014.
The three former NUM leaders want the Labour Court to order Molefe to remove the name of the new NUM from the register of trade unions and restore Limusa and the NUM as separate unions.
According to Sibaya, Rapao and Baatjies, in August last year, Molefe ignored a letter from Limusa’s provincial chairpersons requesting him not to amalgamate the two unions without a resolution issued at a national congress in terms of Limusa’s constitution.
Molefe informed the provincial chairpersons that their objection wasn’t valid in light of the minutes of Limusa’s national congress in June 2020 to amalgamate with NUM.
"Before he could approve the application to amalgamate Limusa and NUM, the registrar was required to establish whether the parties had complied with their constitutions,” reads Sibaya’s affidavit.
In terms of Limusa’s constitution, amalgamation can only be approved if two-thirds of its national congress delegates vote in favour of it, the terms and conditions are negotiated with the other party/parties, and the majority of its central committee members agree with such terms and members of a general meeting called for this purpose ratify the central committee’s decision.
Ahead of its four-day national congress, which starts tomorrow (Monday), Cosatu has admitted some of the challenges faced by Limusa, including that establishing a union within a sector that was highly organised and with a bigger size of membership proved to be difficult.
"This was exacerbated by lack of organisational experience and lack of funding,” states Cosatu’s organisational report to be presented at the national congress.
According to Cosatu, after two years of existence, cracks emerged among Limusa’s national leadership, resulting in some resigning and the union couldn’t observe its constitutional obligations.
In addition, many Cosatu affiliates tried to assist Limusa, but political differences made it difficult. The leadership of the NUM and Limusa discussed possible merging which both unions accepted and Cosatu claims their respective congresses endorsed the decision.
Molefe granted NUM approval to extend the scope of its constitution to cover metal, engineering, rubber, tyre, auto and plastic industries.
"Since then, some within the leadership of Limusa have now challenged their dissolution and want the registrar to reverse such a decision,” Cosatu said.
However, the federation expressed its happiness that NUM was making inroads in its new scope and has now even been admitted as a member of the Metal Industries and Engineering Bargaining Council.