The Union of Muslim
Students’ Association (MSA Union) of South Africa stands in full solidarity and
support of the march taking place at the University of Johannesburg, the
University of the Witwatersrand and the University of Cape Town on October 6, calling for the insourcing of
workers.
We cannot call for transformation without
noting and calling out the gross victimisation of our workers – our mothers and
fathers on campus – who spend their time ensuring that we are able to exist in
safe, clean and secure environments.
As stated on
the official Facebook page of the October6 movement, “From 1999 many of South Africa’s public universities began
outsourcing the labour of workers on campuses. Thousands of workers…are no longer paid directly by universities, but
receive their salaries through private companies contracted by universities to
broker and oversee labour on campuses. These companies make substantial profits
from acting as ‘middle-men’ in these labour arrangements, profits which are
created from driving down workers’ salaries.
When workers
lost their direct employment contracts with universities, they not only had
their salaries cut by up to 40%, they also lost the benefits they had once
received as employees of universities, including the right for their children
to attend university for free. They also lost work security. Although workers
come to campuses every day to offer work that ensures the smooth running of
universities, they have been made into second-class citizens on campuses. High
rates of casual work means that jobs are insecure. They cannot petition the
university for better working conditions because the university no longer
employs them directly. In order for companies to retain their profitable
contracts with universities, they have harsh regulations on workers so that
university managements are protected from any ‘trouble’ that comes from
employing people at tiny salaries with no benefits.
University managements make themselves unaccountable to workers because they argue that workers are no longer their responsibility, they are the responsibility of private companies. But workers spend all of their working days on campuses, traveling vast distances to provide important services to all of us that live and work at universities.
Campus workers are our co-workers and colleagues. They share our daily work space and are an indispensable part of our university communities. Outsourcing undercuts this commonality. It eases the mistreatment of workers and it fails to recognise their presence as vital to campus life.”
University managements make themselves unaccountable to workers because they argue that workers are no longer their responsibility, they are the responsibility of private companies. But workers spend all of their working days on campuses, traveling vast distances to provide important services to all of us that live and work at universities.
Campus workers are our co-workers and colleagues. They share our daily work space and are an indispensable part of our university communities. Outsourcing undercuts this commonality. It eases the mistreatment of workers and it fails to recognise their presence as vital to campus life.”
The exploitation of workers remains the very
lifeblood of capitalism – and as a Muslim organisation, it is our duty to call
out injustice. Allah SWT says in Surah Maida, verse 8: “show integrity for the
sake of Allah, bearing witness with justice.”
As
a body representing students, we recognise the need for such a march and fully
support the broader movement towards our institutions of learning becoming
decolonised, public African universities.
DETAILS:
Wits – 12-2pm, Great Hall and Jorissen Street Entrance
UJ – 12-2pm, Main Gates, Kingsway Avenue Auckland Park
UCT - 12-2pm, Lower Campus, Bremmer Building to Marikana Memorial Hall
Issued by the Union of Muslim Students’
Associations of South Africa
4 October 2015
For more
information, contact:
Nadeem
Mahomed
President
071 891
8722 | union.president@msa.org.za
Aaisha
Dadi Patel
Head of
Politics & South African and International Affairs
071 358
5104 | union.politics@msa.org.za
