Welcome

South African Engineers’ and Founders’ Association

The SA Engineers and Founders Association (SAEFA) represents the interests of hundreds of member companies in the metal and engineering industry. These companies range in size from very small employers to large multinational organisations. SAEFA not only offers a wide range of direct services to member companies but also represents the interests of our members at both industry and national levels. 

SAEFA’s direct services to member companies, available at a reduced fee to these companies compared to what a non-member company would pay in the market, include assistance on all matters affecting the relationship between themselves and their employees/trade unions – for example:

  • Dispute resolution, conciliation, mediation and arbitration services 
  • Advice, assistance, consultancy and training on labour legislation, employment conditions and all other Industrial Relations matters
  • Assistance is also provided with health and safety matters, broad-based black economic empowerment, contract price adjustments and skills development through our affiliate organisations

For full information on these services contact SAEFA’s Executive Director, Gordon Angus, at gordon@saefa.co.za. 

SAEFA also represents the interests of our member companies in all industry negotiations with the industry’s trade unions, not only on wages and other conditions of employment but also on the industry’s benefit funds which provide benefits to employees such as pensions, permanent disability and sick pay benefits. SAEFA has its own seats at the MEIBC, participating directly in all activities there.

Being a member of SAEFA allows you to have a direct say in what happens in your industry.

 

News

Why the fight against extension is so important

The minimum, entry-level wage rate according to the settlement agreement that SEIFSA and the unions are trying to force on the industry is R46.53 per hour.  By comparison:

Industry

Minimum wage per hour

Motor

R16.72

Furniture

R20.00

Plastics

R28.07

Road Freight

R28.21

Civil Engineering

R34.45

Members of the Plastic Converters Association (PCA) are pushing for the settlement agreement to be extended to you.  They benefit from a minimum wage rate of less than R30/hr and they are in favour of the extension of an agreement that doesn’t even apply to them.

The statistics that matter regarding extension of agreements

5 September 2018

At a meeting of the parties to the MEIBC held earlier this week, SEIFSA and the Plastic Converters’ Association (PCA) voted in favour of the extension of the Settlement Agreement reached last year between SEIFSA and the trade unions.  Should this extension succeed, the implications for the industry are as follows:

  • 1 037 companies (SEIFSA Association members) will be dictating to the remaining 9 194 about what happens in the industry.  10% of companies get to decide what happens irrespective of the views of the remaining 90%.
  • SEIFSA do not represent the majority of employees.  They represent 164 931 of the 424 365 employees in the industry, or 38%.
  • The new minimum wage for the industry will be R46.53 per hour.  Compare this for example to the new minimum rates under the Motor Industry Bargaining Council, which are under R30 per hour and the newly agreed National Minimum Wage of R20 per hour.  Add on costs included in the settlement agreement amount to an extra 35% or higher, meaning the effective cost to employers in our industry will be a minimum of well over R60 per hour.

Attempt to Extend the Settlement Agreement

5 September 2018

Despite objections put forward by the SA Engineers and Founders Association in a MEIBC Manco Meeting last week, the parties to the MEIBC resolved to hold a meeting yesterday, the 4th of September 2018, for the purposes of conducting a vote around the extension of the Administration and Registration Expenses Agreement and the 2017 - 2020 Settlement Agreement between SEIFSA and the trade unions. The meeting was held yesterday morning and the majority of the parties present (many of which, in our view, are not entitled to vote) voted in favour of the gazettal and extension of the agreements.

We continue to hold the view that the decision taken yesterday is unconstitutional and unlawful. We are, therefore, consulting with our legal team with a view to challenging the decision in court, as we believe that the extension of the Settlement Agreement will have a catastrophic effect on employment and cause further severe strain on the engineering industry.

Update following the vote of all parties