Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant continues to back the centralised wage bargaining model as the most suitable mechanism through which the country’s fractious labour relations contentions can be deliberated and solved, appealing to business on Thursday to adopt a collective, unified approach when engaging with labour.

“I must emphasise that centralised collective bargaining is the best tool to use to discuss issues, so I encourage that you [use industry chambers] when negotiating with organised labour so that we can bring stability to the workplace.

“[There] is no guarantee that there won’t be unintended consequences, [but] either we find an elegant way of managing [labour relations] or change the things that gave rise to tension. We need to stay engaged,” she told a business breakfast hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in South Africa on Thursday.

She further noted that South Africa’s labour laws were unique in that they extended beyond the “bread and butter issues”, but held that this was informed by the country’s “peculiar” history.

Labour legislation was an expression of the South African Constitution, which recognised the rights of employers and trade unions and went beyond simple workplace “issues”, said Oliphant.

“While our Constitution is progressive – with a Bill of Rights second to none – this must be the reference point for our labour laws. The Bill lays down the right to collective bargaining, the choice to join a trade union and to strike,” the Minister advanced.

She added that smaller companies that were unable to meet the wage obligations set out through this collective bargaining process could apply for an exemption through the Department of Labour.

Noting, meanwhile, that workers had emerged from the previous political dispensation with high expectations of a post-Apartheid South Africa in which they would receive a living wage and be financially secure, Oliphant asserted that the increasing realisation that this was not the case had contributed to dissatisfaction among the labour force and had driven the violent strikes seen in recent years.

“Workers continue to struggle financially for a number of reasons and unless [we] deal with the remaining triggers to industrial relations [strife], we’ll continue to see instability.

“While the labour relations environment has recently stabilised, we shouldn't be complacent. Inequality and poverty are still a threat,” she cautioned.

Recent amendments to labour laws that were the result of inputs from government, labour, business and civil society were also expected to bolster the labour negotiations environment, empowering institutions such as the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration, she said.

Several amendments to labour legislation were currently in the process of being processed, among them the Unemployment Insurance Amendment Act, which was currently before Parliament; the Occupational Health and Safety Act, which was currently with the National Economic Development and Labour Council before being passed on to Cabinet for consideration; and the Compensation Amendment Act.

“We need [through our labour legislation] to find a delicate balance between not suffocating the economy and extending protection to workers, [but] it’s not in our interest to introduce labour laws that carry the threat of collapsing companies – we want to find a happy medium,” the Minister held.