Minimum wage exposes SA faultlines
Every now and then campaigns to end domestic violence are often received with cynicism and dismissed as a waste of both energy and money. The 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Violence Campaign – an international crusade running every year between November 25 and December 10 – and many other such initiatives are often seen as little more than unhelpful gender talk shows. At worst they are regarded as mere excuses especially by non-governmental organisations to justify their existence and donor funded budgets. It is really sad that the noble efforts to foster civility in society can be viewed that…
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Tackle dominant firms to achieve wealth distribution
Letters to the Editor The focus on “state capture” in South Africa has tended to divert attention from a deeper question. How can the distribution of wealth and control over the economy be changed in material terms? There is an implicit justification for corruption and other rent-seeking activities, namely that this is the only way to do it. The argument runs that the rules of the game are stacked against the majority and so the only option is to break the rules. It can be further asserted that nobody who has “made it” actually did so playing by the current…
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The minimum wage and the dignity of South Africans
Letters to the Editor In 1955 the people of South Africa in Kliptown guaranteed the realisation of the national minimum wage. As one of the most unequal society in the world, a minimum wage protects and creates an assurance for the poorest of our people. It seeks to close an existing vacuum which creates intra-class conflict within the poorest as they compete on the cheapest labour offer. The minimum wage will eliminate the leeway of employers to exploit the poorest amongst our people. A minimum wage can be a positive motivator for productivity which is critical in growing the economy…
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