Doctors’ trade union dissolved
The South African Medical Association trade union, which was affiliated to Cosatu, has been dissolved.
|||Johannesburg - The South African Medical Association (SAMA) trade union has been dissolved as the organisation admits to service delivery challenges to members under its current model.
The move will have a number of ripple effects including Cosatu’s loss of an affiliate.
SAMA’s board of directors penned a letter to members recently, explaining that the adjustment was meant to improve and optimise represetantion of employed doctors in both private and public institutions.
Public sector doctors were the union’s main members, while specialist and private practice general practitioners were catered to within other divisions of the association.
“The public sector division of SAMA houses the Industrial Relations and Collective Bargaining units. These have served members with labour related matters and kept the voice of doctors in the public sector bargaining chamber system. SAMA registered as a trade union in 1996 so it could, in line with changing labour legislation, serve its public sector members accordingly,” read the statement.
However the board said after a number of failed attempts to expand the union’s functions and structures, it had decided to move the public sector doctors back into the main organisation.
“As per the Trade Union constitution, over the last two years, attempts have been made to try and set up institutional, regional, provincial and national structures; however these have for a number of reasons not been possible in most areas, with the result that service delivery to membership has not been optimal,” said the board.
While an interim committee had been setup to deal with the transition, it was unclear what would become of existing union leaders who were elected in line with its constitution.
The board also said it was liaising with the office of the Labour Registrar to ensure SAMA continued to represent its members in all collective bargaining processes.
Labour Bureau