When it comes to expenses, one of the questions we asked in both Surveys was what the biggest monthly expense was to remain employed. Last year, the clear “winner” was the cost to travel to and from work, at 34.4 percent among respondents.
As for this year, transport remains a significant cost, almost doubling among respondents at 64.9 percent.
That is a considerable increase, but does make sense given the meteoric rise in petrol price we have seen in South Africa as a result of the ongoing crisis in the Middle East involving the United States and Iran. This geopolitical tension and uncertainty has brought with it several changes, as unpredictable conditions have resulted in trips to petrol stations costing more and more.
This month, South Africans have a slight reprieve, with the petrol price going down by 52 cents per litre. While the decrease is welcome, it does not change the impact that the rest of 2026 has had in terms of commuting to and from work each day.
We therefore do not expect to see much change in terms of next year’s numbers, as transport costs will likely remain the biggest expense for workers in South Africa.
As for the other key expenses, connectivity ranked second at 21.6 percent. It is an essential element of working in most professions these days, and interestingly, this number is higher than data/airtime. It therefore points to the fact that most South Africans lean heavily on WiFi in order to connect to the internet, with the cost of data and airtime still being quite exorbitant in the country.
This outlook won’t change soon either, as local networks continue to adopt many practices that are anti-consumer. For example, the ICASA ruling on data bundle expiry has not been implemented as intended locally, which means purchasing data in South Africa is still onerous.
The other option in the Survey was electronics. It garnered 10.3 percent of responses. This is likely due to the fact that the question is phrased as monthly expenses and not annual ones, which may see this category rise in terms of importance.
As such, it looks like South African workers are happy to get by with whatever hardware sees them through the day and not invest in anything needless at the moment, especially as the RAMaggedon has pushed the price of electronics up in 2026, much like petrol has.
As we near the end of 2026, it will be interesting to see what happens during the festive season, and whether holiday commuting numbers are up or down from last year, depending on the petrol price.
WE’RE PUBLISHING A NUMBER OF FEATURES THIS MONTH BASED ON THE RESPONSES FROM OUR 2026 STATE OF WORK SURVEY. YOU CAN CHECK THEM OUT HERE.
The National Union of Mineworkers has warned that the possible loss of jobs at De Beers’ Venetia Mine and De Beers Sightholder Sales South Africa could have “devastating consequences” for workers, their families and surrounding communities.
The National Union of Mineworkers has raised concerns about how companies balance production demands, profits and worker safety.
The union says every fatality represents a failure of accountability.
Dive Deeper
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has accused mining and construction companies of failing to prevent workplace deaths, warning that workers continue to bear the human cost of an industry that depends on their labour to generate wealth.
The union’s National Health and Safety Committee (NAHSCO) said 38 mineworkers and 23 construction workers had died in workplace incidents during the reporting period, describing the fatalities as preventable failures of leadership, planning and accountability.
‘They left home to earn an honest living but never returned’
“These are not mere statistics,” NUM said. “They are human beings, parents, siblings, and breadwinners who left home to earn an honest living but never returned.”
The warning comes as the union raises concerns about how companies balance production demands, profits and worker safety.
NUM said workers were “sacrificing their lives while generating wealth for companies that too often prioritise production and profit above human dignity, safety, and health”.
A failure of accountability
The union said every fatality represented a failure of accountability that left families and communities carrying the consequences.
The committee also raised concern about an increase in women workers dying at workplaces, calling for urgent investigation and intervention. It said memorial services and condolences were not enough without enforceable action to prevent further deaths.
NUM said the impact of workplace failures extended beyond fatalities, pointing to serious injuries, occupational diseases, psychological trauma and a demoralised workforce.
Safety discussions among employers, labour and government
The union’s criticism extends to the way safety discussions are handled among employers, labour and government.
NUM said major mining companies were withdrawing from Tripartite Health and Safety Forums at a time when the industry needed stronger cooperation. It cited Anglo American’s withdrawal from the initiative, followed by Valterra, and said all planned Tripartite Health and Safety meetings for 2026 had been cancelled.
“Employers should be strengthening cooperation — not withdrawing from it,” the NUM said.
The union said these forums were essential because they brought together organised labour, employers and government to identify risks and prevent deaths.
NUM also criticised Impala Mine’s “Safety Day” following multiple workplace fatalities, saying the union had been excluded from the event despite being a recognised workforce representative.
Public relations responses to safety failures ‘do not help’
The union rejected what it described as public relations responses to safety failures, saying safety required proper equipment maintenance, effective supervision, visible leadership and worker participation.
Beyond safety, NUM raised concerns about job losses in the diamond sector, warning that workers were being forced to carry the burden of company restructuring.
The union highlighted threats to more than 1 100 permanent jobs at Venetia Mine in Musina, uncertainty at Cullinan Mine and the business rescue process at Finch Mine in Kimberley.
NUM said mineworkers should not bear the cost of corporate restructuring while executive interests remained protected.
The union has called on the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, the Mine Health and Safety Inspectorate and employers to strengthen enforcement, hold companies accountable and ensure workers have a meaningful role in safety decisions.
“Our message is clear: Every worker who leaves home for work deserves to return home alive,” NUM said.
Summary
The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) reports 61 workplace deaths (38 in mining, 23 in construction) due to preventable safety failures, emphasizing the human cost behind these fatalities.
NUM criticizes companies for prioritizing production and profit over worker safety, highlighting a failure of leadership, planning, and accountability.
Concerns include rising deaths among women workers, inadequate cooperation in safety forums due to company withdrawals, and exclusion of union voices in safety events.
The union warns against superficial public relations responses, stressing the need for proper safety measures, and highlights ongoing job insecurity amid company restructuring in the diamond sector.
NUM calls on government agencies and employers to enforce safety regulations, hold companies accountable, and ensure workers have a meaningful role in safety decisions.
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The National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) has accused mining and construction companies of failing to prevent workplace deaths, warning that workers continue to bear the human cost of an industry that depends on their labour to generate wealth.
The union’s National Health and Safety Committee (NAHSCO) said 38 mineworkers and 23 construction workers had died in workplace incidents during the reporting period, describing the fatalities as preventable failures of leadership, planning and accountability.
“These are not mere statistics,” NUM said. “They are human beings, parents, siblings, and breadwinners who left home to earn an honest living but never returned.”
The warning comes as the union raises concerns about how companies balance production demands, profits and worker safety.
NUM said workers were “sacrificing their lives while generating wealth for companies that too often prioritise production and profit above human dignity, safety, and health”.
The union said every fatality represented a failure of accountability that left families and communities carrying the consequences.
The committee also raised concern about an increase in women workers dying at workplaces, calling for urgent investigation and intervention. It said memorial services and condolences were not enough without enforceable action to prevent further deaths.
NUM said the impact of workplace failures extended beyond fatalities, pointing to serious injuries, occupational diseases, psychological trauma and a demoralised workforce.
The union’s criticism extends to the way safety discussions are handled among employers, labour and government.
NUM said major mining companies were withdrawing from Tripartite Health and Safety Forums at a time when the industry needed stronger cooperation. It cited Anglo American’s withdrawal from the initiative, followed by Valterra, and said all planned Tripartite Health and Safety meetings for 2026 had been cancelled.
“Employers should be strengthening cooperation — not withdrawing from it,” the NUM said.
The union said these forums were essential because they brought together organised labour, employers and government to identify risks and prevent deaths.
NUM also criticised Impala Mine’s “Safety Day” following multiple workplace fatalities, saying the union had been excluded from the event despite being a recognised workforce representative.
The union rejected what it described as public relations responses to safety failures, saying safety required proper equipment maintenance, effective supervision, visible leadership and worker participation.
Beyond safety, NUM raised concerns about job losses in the diamond sector, warning that workers were being forced to carry the burden of company restructuring.
The union highlighted threats to more than 1 100 permanent jobs at Venetia Mine in Musina, uncertainty at Cullinan Mine and the business rescue process at Finch Mine in Kimberley.
NUM said mineworkers should not bear the cost of corporate restructuring while executive interests remained protected.
The union has called on the Department of Mineral and Petroleum Resources, the Mine Health and Safety Inspectorate and employers to strengthen enforcement, hold companies accountable and ensure workers have a meaningful role in safety decisions.
“Our message is clear: Every worker who leaves home for work deserves to return home alive,” NUM said.
Johannesburg – The Congress of South African Trade Unions has expressed extreme dismay at President Cyril Ramaphosa’s appointment of members to the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, saying the process ignored clear legal requirements for the inclusion of labour and business representatives.
COSATU noted that the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Act of 2024 specifically calls for representatives from business and labour to form part of the Council. This did not happen. Highly experienced gender rights activists from the labour movement had been nominated to Parliament, yet none were appointed. The federation said this failure was formally raised with the Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, which handled the selection process, but no response was received.
Exclusion of Labour and Business Representatives
The Act establishes the Council as a statutory body to provide strategic leadership in eliminating gender-based violence and femicide. It must coordinate a multi-sectoral and inter-sectoral approach to implement the national strategy on GBVF at national, provincial and local levels. The Board is limited to no more than 15 members. Seven of these must come from civil society and the private sector. Civil society is defined in the law to include non-governmental organisations, labour, and structures that represent citizens’ interests in the field of gender-based violence and femicide. Government departments also nominate representatives of a certain rank.
President Ramaphosa appointed the members for a three-year term from 1 August 2026 to 31 July 2029. Dr Ramalepe Lebogang Mathibe was designated chairperson and Ms Welheminah R. (Shoki) Tshabalala deputy chairperson. The other members are Ms Keitumetse Fatimata Moutloatse, Ms Caroline Peters, Dr Zubeda Dangor, Ms Vuyisiwe Numalo, Mr Anele Siswana and Mr TWM Limema.
COSATU argued that the absence of organised labour and business leaves a critical gap. “We cannot allow the state to bluetick its own legislation and their legally binding provisions,” the federation stated.
Workplace Gender-Based Violence Must Sit at the Centre
Gender-based violence and femicide is not an abstract issue, COSATU stressed. It is the lived reality of the cashier at a supermarket harassed by customers, the daily abuse faced by cleaners who fear their own colleagues, and the nightmare of young women across workplaces who are told they will only be appointed if they sleep with the boss.
Workplace trauma linked to GBVF needs to sit at the centre of the Council’s work. The federation said the Council requires the active collaboration of partners in organised labour and business if it is to meet its important objectives and progressive mandate. Without that partnership, the body risks falling short of the multi-sectoral approach the law itself demands.
Long Delays and a National Crisis
The Council’s establishment has been years in the making. The enabling Act was signed in 2024 after earlier commitments dating back to the 2018 Presidential Summit on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide. Delays stretched through 2025 as concerns over funding, vetting and process arose in Parliament. President Ramaphosa himself previously expressed disappointment at the slow progress, noting that the Council was meant to drive down incidents of gender-based violence and that due processes had taken an inordinately long time.
Gender-based violence and femicide was later classified as a national disaster. This classification was intended to unlock stronger coordination, faster resource allocation, expanded survivor support, and better monitoring. The new Council is expected to build on that classification by challenging harmful attitudes, advancing women’s economic empowerment, strengthening law enforcement and scaling up survivor-centred services. Its term begins at the start of Women’s Month.
COSATU described Parliament’s handling of the simple but critical task of including labour and business as a tragedy. The federation said it will engage the Presidency and Parliament’s Presiding Officers to request intervention so that the legal requirements are met.
The Council is mandated to develop an action plan within six months of its establishment for implementing the national strategy. Whether it can deliver meaningful results without the full partnership of labour and business will now be closely watched by those who experience gender-based violence daily in homes, communities and workplaces across South Africa.
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Pikitup, still behind schedule from last week’s Samwu strike, is yet again stranded, due to protests, this time from casual workers.
Casual workers piled refuse in front of the Roodepoort Depot’s gates. Photo: Johan Meyer
Operations at Pikitup’s Roodepoort Depot have once again ground to a halt, this time due to industrial action by casual workers, just days after an unrelated labour dispute disrupted refuse collection across Johannesburg.
When the Roodepoort Record visited the depot on Monday, August 3, a small group of casual workers were unloading refuse from a trailer and piling it in front of the entrance gate on Granville Avenue in Lea Glen.
This is the second consecutive week that the entity has been unable to operate at full capacity.
The latest disruption follows last week’s unprotected industrial action by members of the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (Samwu), which the City of Johannesburg (CoJ) said affected operations after workers attended an unauthorised general meeting and marched to City of Johannesburg offices. The union demanded a meeting with the city manager, the lifting of precautionary suspensions against some of its shop stewards and the implementation of the R10.3b politically facilitated wage agreement.
Municipal dustbins block the entrance to the Pikitup Roodepoort Depot. Photo: Johan Meyer
The Record sent questions to Samwu regional secretary Thobani Nkosi via WhatsApp on July 30, requesting comment on the industrial action. At the time of publication, no response had been received. Phone calls also went unanswered.
Responding to the Record on August 3, CoJ spokesperson Nthatisi Modingoane confirmed that the industrial action undertaken by Samwu members was unauthorised and that none of the required processes for such a meeting had been followed by the union.
Modingoane added that the CoJ is enforcing its ‘no work, no pay’ policy against employees who participated in the action.
“The City also reserves the right to discipline staff who have taken part in the unlawful action and has applied for an interdict against Samwu,” he said.
The latest disruption also follows recent service interruptions caused by contractors withholding services over unpaid invoices.
Responding to a previous media enquiry, Pikitup spokesperson Anthony Selepe told the Record on July 31 that the service disruptions were caused by cash flow challenges experienced by both the entity and the City of Johannesburg.
The Record spoke to striking casual workers at the depot on August 3, who claimed they have been at loggerheads with Pikitup since June 2024, when the entity allegedly cancelled the recruitment process for 400 workers.
“We applied for the advertised positions, went for interviews and even medical exams, only to be told the positions had been cancelled,” said Themba Magoda, who has been collecting refuse on a casual basis since 2019.
“We are told by the entity that there is no money to employ us permanently. We don’t accept this excuse because it only makes sense that using a contractor is more expensive than having your own workforce.”
The Record sent a media enquiry to Pikitup via WhatsApp and email on August 3, requesting comment by 16:00 on the casual workers’ claims, the reason for the reported cancellation of the recruitment process, and the impact of the protest on operations.
At the time of going to print, no response had been received.
From over 400 applications, the portfolio committee says only a few were from formal business organisations.
Hundreds of women gathered at the Union Building lawns in Pretoria on 21 November 2025 in protest against gender-based violence. Picture: Jacques Nelles/EWN
Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities has defended its recommendations to the Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Council, saying it believes they have considerable experience, knowledge and skills to carry out their mandate.This as COSATU registers its objection that the first-of-its-kind council appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday does not include a representative from labour.
However, committee chairperson Liezl van der Merwe said the committee went beyond minimal constitutional requirements and recommended those it thought most suitable to the president.
From over 400 applications, the portfolio committee says only a few were from formal business organisations.
It shortlisted 18 candidates who represented civil society and the private sector.
Van der Merwe said the committee sought legal advice in response to COSATU’s complaint and other negative publicity about the process.
According to a parliamentary legal opinion, the GBVF Act and the defined expression of civil society includes labour and therefore the inclusion of labour as a representative is not a mandatory legislative requirement.ALSO READ: Ramaphosa appoints long-awaited Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Council
But COSATU has interpreted the Act differently.
Its Parliamentary Coordinator, Matthew Parks, said the union will be challenging the appointments.
“The council needs the active collaboration of partners and organised labour and business if it’s to achieve its objectives and progressive mandate. It’s a tragedy that Parliament fumbled this critical but simple task once again.”
The committee, however, said its legal advice confirms that meaningful public participation had been carried out, and that it’s engaged with all public comments openly and fairly.
