As we conclude an extremely difficult year in 2024, the South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) sends its revolutionary greetings to its members, the workers in general, and every South African of goodwill. We wish workers and their families, particularly the 12.2 million unemployed, the best, even though they are fully aware of the nightmare they are going through. Indeed, while the top 10% of richest South Africans, who own 90% of all wealth, are all over the world celebrating their gains and displaying opulence and, at times, ill-gotten wealth, we know that this period is the most painful season for workers, particularly the unemployment and youth trapped in a structural long term unemployment crisis.
There is no hope emerging on the horizon of the tragedy. We are reminded that South Africa is at the precipice as we conclude the years. Below, we highlight just a few of these polycrisis. The biggest challenge the country faces is that of structural unemployment, whose face remains the black majority, women, youth and people living in the former Bantustans and now mushrooming informal settlements around all cities. The numbers of people living in poverty and skipping a meal a day continue to rise, notwithstanding government social programmes. South Africa has remained the most unequal society on earth. This is all thanks to the stubborn ANC leadership that, despite the overwhelming evidence that the macroeconomic programmes they have pursued since 1995 have dismally failed, have remained highly loyal to the Washington consensus or neoliberal approach.
Flowing directly from the above, South Africa faces an unprecedented social crisis. The levels of criminality, in particular violent crimes, the rate of femicide and rape continue to break all world records. South Africans are under siege, and the criminal justice system, which is dysfunctional, fails them every day. Approximately 365 teenage girls give birth daily, with about 10 of these births to girls younger than 15. See the article written by Bheki Sisa. In the 2023/24 financial year, over 122,000 teenagers became mothers, including 2,716 girls aged 10 to 14 and 119,587 aged 15 to 19. This equates to nearly one in four girls falling pregnant before the age of 20, placing South Africa among the countries with the highest rates of teenage pregnancy globally.
Substance abuse, particularly among the youth, has reached pandemic levels. A 2012 national survey reported that 4.4% of individuals had used drugs in the past three months, with a higher prevalence among men (7.9%) compared to women (1.3%). Cannabis was the most commonly used drug at 4.0%. A study found that 62.7% of students reported using substances, with alcohol being the most prevalent at 80.6%, followed by cannabis at 46%. Additionally, students who used substances reported higher levels of depression and anxiety. PMC. The South African Youth Risk Behaviour Survey indicated that 25.1% of Grade 8–11 learners had engaged in binge drinking, defined as consuming five or more drinks in a single session.
The carnage on our roads also underlines the catastrophic levels of unemployment, alcohol, and substance abuse. Road traffic accidents are a significant concern in South Africa, both in terms of human lives lost and economic impact. South Africa experiences approximately 25.1 road deaths per 100,000 population, ranking 42nd globally. This rate is notably higher than the global average and underscores the country’s road safety challenges. South African economy has lost around 1 trillion rands over the past 7 years, averaging over ZAR 142 billion annually or 3.4% of the GDP. So desperate the situation, the RAF, as reported by the SABC News has raised concern over South Africans who throw themselves in front of moving cars to make claims as a survival but hazardous activity.
South Africa is facing unprecedented levels of government neglect. Many parts of Gauteng, the economic hub of South Africa, have joined some of the rural areas that do not have drinking water. Water and electricity are among the most necessities of life. We celebrated the massive gains to ensure that these constitutional guarantees fundamentals are accessed by those sidelined by apartheid. Suddenly, as we mark the 30th anniversary of democracy, increasing numbers of people are denied access to water and electricity, which is priced out of the hands of the majority.
Regrettably, internal objective and subjective factors generally weaken the trade union movement and the working-class formations. These factors have paralysed large sections of the working-class formations, making it difficult and sometimes impossible to respond to this unfolding tragedy. If there is a single most crucial task facing the leadership of the working class in 2025, it is the challenge of returning the trade union movement to its glory years, epitomised by the 1973 Durban strikes. Without principled unity in purpose, without ridding itself of foreign cultures and tendencies that threaten to render workers’ movement absolute, and without rooting out corruption and business unionism within its ranks, the trade unions will follow the liberation movements in the graveyard. Without the unity of the trade union to strengthen the worker’s voice and working class in the workplace and our communities, the sun will eventually set, and workers will be left at the mercy of the brutal capitalist system.
