... in particular, we also want to note that at the heart of the presidential commitment during the Sona was the commitment to grow the economy and to provide the jobs. That commitment flows from our understanding and acceptance of the Freedom Charter 64years ago, wherein we made a commitment to provide work and security for all. Of particular importance in the commitment we have made are the key areas that were found to have been treasonable by the government your forebears, hon members in the DA.
That all workers shall be freed to form trade unions and to elect their officers and to make wage agreements with their employers. That the state shall recognise the right and duty of all to work and to draw full unemployment benefits. That men and women of all races shall receive equal pay for equal work. That there shall be a 40hours week, a National Minimum Wage. This is the area that I want to focus on. This is an area that hon Bagraim should take note of, that in this particular area when our forebears were in fact [Inaudible] and were accused of treason. They were making the commitment to the world over in particular to our people - that there should in fact be a National Minimum Wage with the sole objective of protecting the vulnerable sectors to ensure that they are able to cope with the vagaries of the economy of the time and
even today. Hence we say, it is important to understand, to locate and situate the budget that has been presented by the Minister in the context of the policies that are progressive that the ANC have stood for, for quite a long time.
Our election manifesto is that the millions of South Africans have supported outlines how we intend traversing this courageous and noble task. This and other mechanisms outlined both in the manifesto the National Development Plan, NDP, and directives of the Freedom Charter have made it possible for us to bring hope to our people through a range of interventions and projects undertakings to make our shared dream a reality. This include - but not limited to the Investment Summit, the Job Summit, the Fourth Industrial Revolution Summit that have outlined a number of commitments including those that the President has already reported on.
The ANC-led government is committed to ensuring that the rights enshrined in the Constitution entrenching the rights of workers and business alike, are fully protected. Through innovative and mutually reinforcing social compact, between government, labour and business, we have been able to foster a patriotic co-operation that place the overall interest of the country ahead.
The successful negotiations that led to the conclusion of the National Minimum Wage and its subsequent enactment via a parliamentary process was an important milestone in our history of the tripartite platform which is National Economic Development and Labour Council, Nedlac. This groundbreaking achievement gave full expression to one of the commitments we have made in the Freedom Charter.
As the ANC, we define both sides of our social partners as motive forces that stand to benefit in the advancement of our national democratic revolution. The defeat of all the atrocities of apartheid and colonialism and take pride in ensuring that our remain pro-poor and aligned to the wishes and aspirations of the rural poor, the landless, the unemployed, the homeless, people with disability and the working poor who in their majority are young and women in gender. This is the context that should situate the budget that has been presented.
The issue of human rights is directly linked to safety at the workplace. The recent loss of lives at work coupled with injuries that in some respect have gone for far too long without being attended to is a grave area that needs our urgent attention. We are
heartened and grateful to the human gestures that hon Minister has demonstrated when he personally visited some of the victims.
We urge the hon Minister to extend those visits as and wherever possible to all situations of grave injustice that has since become temporarily a defining feature in this area of work. In the same vein, I join the hon chairperson of our portfolio committee in thanking Channel 404's Checkpoint for bringing to the fore some of these gross injustices.
As the portfolio committee, we commit and extend our hand in ensuring that the department will not travel this journey of reducing occupational hazard alone.
The ANC has in its election manifesto made a commitment to create sustainable jobs. The jobs should be decent jobs that seek to promote human dignity. In pursuance of that goal, the department must pursue all its programmes towards ensuring secure work environment as well as fulfilling the commitments we have made to our people.
In this regard, we take note in particular from the budget statement the allocations that have been made to enforcement services also in
particular the commitments around the compensation fund as well as the specific focus on the areas that relates to the gross injustice that hon Minister has already made commitment to in honouring and to correcting.
In his Sona, hon President had this to say with regard to this area in particular with regard to the National Minimum Wage, that the "National Minimum Wage Commission is expected to conclude its research on the impact of minimum wage on employment poverty, inequality, and wage deferential. It will evaluate the impact of wage Bill in improving the lives of our people, report back and recommend to the Minister a way forward whether to increase or not.
The ANC will ensure that during the 6th Parliament there is vigorous oversight and that the time frames and deadlines are met. In our commitment to continuously build the social contract and social compact Nedlac allows a platform for rigorous engagements and consensus and upholding human rights to enhance freedom and democracy as enshrined in the Freedom Charter and the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa."
Chairperson, allow us to submit that we support the budget statement. Thank you.