Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Centro de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em História, Florianópolis, 2013. / Made available in DSpace on 2013-12-05T22:36:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 320047.pdf: 2736715 bytes, checksum: e14915ee9122289dd4dc3c2bf011bcc9 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013 / A influência do Novo Sindicalismo no Brasil sobre a organização política dos trabalhadores técnico-administrativos em educação (TTAEs) da Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina é o tema central deste estudo. A transição política lenta, gradual e ?irrestrita?: apresentada pelos militares do grupo do general Ernesto Geisel, presidente da República na época, criou a possibilidade para que as organizações de classe se organizassem em todo o Brasil. Contraditoriamente, nas universidades brasileiras, fóruns críticos de discussão sobre a política de repressão do regime militar e sobre a crise dos anos 1970/1980 e suas consequências sobre as condições de vida da classe trabalhadora, promoveu-se a obediência dos trabalhadores ao Estado, tanto nas relações de trabalho como nas relações políticas com a administração central da instituição. Essa administração, em obediência às duas primeiras máximas da abertura política, tomou uma atitude lenta e gradual, impedindo que mudanças maiores ocorressem no comportamento político dos TTAEs da UFSC. A persistência e a colaboração da administração da UFSC em não deixar que o grupo de oposição chegasse ao poder na Associação dos Servidores da UFSC (ASUFSC) e a transformasse em uma entidade de classe, política e autônoma em relação ao governo geraram o Movimento Alternativa Independente. O que diz respeito à luta por direitos e participação dos trabalhadores da UFSC na busca constante pela cidadania é o pano de fundo do movimento de resistência que chegou ao poder na ASUFSC apenas em 1989 e logo tratou de fundar o Sindicato dos Trabalhadores da UFSC (SINTUFSC). <br> / Abstract : The central theme of this paper is the influence of the New Syndicalism in Brazil movement on the political organization of the education management workers (the TTAE's) at the Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC). The slow, step-by-step and ?boundless? political transition: presented by the military, along with General Ernesto Geisel, president of Brazil at the time, it created a nation-wide possibility for class organization. The brazilian universities, which had always been critical of the military's opressive statism and of the 1970's-80's crisis, along with its consequences on the working class living conditions, now promoted working class obedience towards the state, not only as in workplace relations but also political relations via the central management of the institution. This new administration, in accordance with the two maxims of Brazil's political opening, adopted a slow and gradual pacing, preventing greater changes from occurring in the political behaviour of the federal university's TTAE's. The persistance and collaboration within UFSC's administration applied to preventing the opposition from reaching power over the Servers' Association (ASUFSC), turning it into a class entity, political and autonomous towards the government, are the main causes that generated the Alternative Independent Movement. The plight for rights and active participation of UFSC employees in the constant seeking of social justice is the background of the resistance movement that finally reached power over the ASUFSC in 1989, and subsequently founded the Worker's Syndicate of UFSC (SINTUFSC).

Dissertação (mestrado)—Universidade de Brasília, Instituto de Letras, Departamento de Linguística, Português e Línguas Clássicas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Linguística, 2013. / Submitted by Alaíde Gonçalves dos Santos (alaide@unb.br) on 2013-06-11T13:43:57Z No. of bitstreams: 1 2013_Risalva BernardinoNeves.pdf: 21240893 bytes, checksum: 8d5bba0c28adfd623be3da8f9bd313ed (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Guimaraes Jacqueline(jacqueline.guimaraes@bce.unb.br) on 2013-06-12T14:05:54Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 2013_Risalva BernardinoNeves.pdf: 21240893 bytes, checksum: 8d5bba0c28adfd623be3da8f9bd313ed (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2013-06-12T14:05:54Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2013_Risalva BernardinoNeves.pdf: 21240893 bytes, checksum: 8d5bba0c28adfd623be3da8f9bd313ed (MD5) / Este estudo tem por objetivo investigar representações/discursos sobre a mobilização grevista de professores/as da SEDF, realizada em 2012, na cobertura do jornal Correio Braziliense, tendo em vista a construção de sentidos potencialmente ideológicos. Para isso, esta pesquisa – qualitativa, predominantemente documental e sincrônica – baseouse na abordagem crítico-explanatória da Análise de Discurso Crítica (CHOULIARAKI & FAIRCLOUGH, 1999; FAIRCLOUGH, 2001, 2003; RAMALHO & RESENDE, 2011; RESENDE & RAMALHO, 2006), que concebe a linguagem como parte da vida social interligada com outros momentos sociais em processos dialéticos. Foi realizada pesquisa bibliográfica e análise de conjuntura a partir dos principais aportes teóricos de Thompson (1995, 1998) sobre a ideologia, e Silva (2009, 2010), Apple (2000, 2010), Gentilli (1996, 2000, 2010) sobre neoliberalismo e educação. O corpus ampliado, composto por reportagens do Jornal Correio Braziliense, assim como por notícias do site do Sindicato dos Professores do DF (Sinpro-DF), publicados à época da mobilização, e entrevistas com professoras/colaboradoras, foi analisado com base em categorias linguístico-discursivas ligadas ao significado inter-acional do discurso (estrutura genérica, relações semânticas e intertextualidade), significado representacional (representação dos atores sociais, seleção lexical) e significado identificacional (avaliação e presunções valorativas). O estudo aponta para uma conjuntura caracterizada por políticas neoliberais, em cuja agenda a educação não ocupa um lugar privilegiado, assim como para a predominância, no corpus principal de reportagens, de representações jornalísticas parciais e depreciativas dos/as docentes na conjuntura das manifestações, as quais legitimam discursos hegemônicos neoliberais, que representam docentes como uma categoria desvalorizada e descomprometida com sua profissão. Em contrapartida, foram identificados, também, traços de discursos contra-hegemônicos nas falas das professoras/colaboradoras, que problematizam esses discursos hegemônicos. _______________________________________________________________________________________ ABSTRACT / This study aims to investigate representations and discourses on strike mobilization of teachers of “SEDF”, held in 2012, by the newspaper “Correio Braziliense”, with a view to potentially ideological construction of meaning. For this purpose, this research - qualitative, predominantly documentary and synchronic - was based on criticalexplanatory approach of Critical Discourse Analysis (CHOULIARAKI & FAIRCLOUGH, 1999; FAIRCLOUGH, 2001, 2003; RAMALHO & RESENDE, 2011; RESENDE & RAMALHO, 2006), which sees language as part of social life interconnected with other social moments in dialectical processes. Bibliographical research and social analysis were made with the main theoretical contributions of Thompson (1995, 1998) on ideology, and Silva (2009, 2010), Apple (2000, 2010), Gentilli (1996, 2000, 2010) on neoliberalism and education. The expanded corpus, consisted of “Correio Braziliense” news, as well as news from the site of “Sinpro-DF”, published at the time of mobilization; and interviews with collaborating teachers, were analyzed based on linguistic-discursive categories related to inter-actional discourse meaning (generic structure, semantic relationships, intertextuality), representational meaning (representation of social actors, lexical selection) and identificational meaning (evaluation and evaluative assumptions). The study points to an environment characterized by neoliberal policies in education whose agenda does not occupy a privileged place, as well as the predominance in the main corpus of stories of partial and derogatory journalistic representations on the conjuncture of events, which legitimize neoliberal hegemonic discourses that represent teachers as undervalued and unengaged professionals . On the other hand, traces of counterhegemonic discourses in teachers’ statements have been identified, and they also problematize these hegemonic discourses.

Orientador : Michael M. Hall / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Filosofia e Ciencias Humanas / Made available in DSpace on 2018-07-28T18:43:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Negro_AntonioLuigi_D.pdf: 44268567 bytes, checksum: 452ee856f3282a9752e31fb43f85d4ad (MD5) Previous issue date: 2001 / Resumo: Linhas de Montagem investiga e analisa a experiência do povo brasileiro na construção de uma nação industrial. Situando-se entre o pós- guerra e as greves de 1974, estuda o setor automobilístico - suas fábricas na grande São Paulo -, e a interação das estratégias de industriais, políticos e partidos com o movimento operário. Para tal, aborda a relação entre o avanço da manufatura doméstica e a sindicalização operária nas fábricas durante os governos Vargas (1951-54) e Kubitschek (1956-60). Demonstra, assim, que a instalação de um cinturão automobilístico de linhas de montagem assentou-se numa rede de alianças patronal, policial, estatal e diplomática dedicada à neutralização dos esforços dos trabalhadores em instituir um sistema sindical independente da política estatal e dos patrões. Em vista disso, as conquistas sociais dessa época são afirmadas no chão das fábricas, e não benesses de acordos firmados em palácios. Durante os governos de Quadros (1961) e Goulart (1961-64), a aliança citada se sentiu ameaçada não só por sua incapacidade de constituir um mercado interno como também pela escalada dos movimentos sociais. Tramando contra Jango, aceitou o domínio militar após o golpe que o derrubou. Os novos donos do poder promoveram a "operação limpeza" nos sindicatos e favoreceram oposições moderadas e direitistas ao mesmo, tempo em que instruíam novos líderes em cursos de formação. Entre os metalúrgicos do , ABC, as noções de "sindicalismo autêntico" - forjadas na oposição à esquerda do pré-64 -, sofreram um processo de mutação que contribuiu para a formação do "novo sindicalismo". Este, para se impor, enfrentou o mais tradicional desafio: sindicalizar o operariado nas fábricas diante dos patrões / Abstract: Not informed. / Doutorado / Doutor em História

Orientador: Maria Suely Kofes / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Filosofia e Ciencias Humanas / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-03T21:39:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Scaramella_MariaLuisa_M.pdf: 10058257 bytes, checksum: 83d07823aea126eccdace4cc543930d3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2004 / Resumo: Partindo da analise de uma trajetória e de narrativas de caminhoneiros sobre suas próprias vidas e tomando a greve dos caminhoneiros de julho de 1999 como um evento crítico, este trabalho aponta para possíveis reconfigurações no que concerne à experiência dos caminhoneiros no exercício de sua profissão. A continua decadência econômica que afeta a categoria ao longo das últimas décadas, e em especial na década de 90, é colocada pela greve dos caminhoneiros de julho de 1999 e pelas ulteriores. Compreendida como um evento crítico, a greve de julho de 1999 condensa um processo de decadência que envolve está categoria de trabalhadores, colocando no plano social, portanto coletivo, os problemas enfrentados pelos mesmos. Como evento crítico, a greve aponta para mudanças no que concerne a experiência dos caminhoneiros, trazendo à tona novos moldes sobre os quais a profissão se dá. Tendo em vista o atual contexto, uma das principais questões para a qual este trabalho aponta é, a longo prazo, o gradativo desaparecimento dos caminhoneiros autônomos independentes. As mudanças, nem sempre positivas, não suprimem, contudo, um lado mais romântico da profissão. Este lado não se opõe ao presente marcado pelas greves e pelas dificuldades vivenciadas pelos caminhoneiros, mas caminha paralelamente a ele e é recuperado no dia a dia dos caminhoneiros / Abstract: Starting with the analysis of one trucker' s trajectory and with truckers' narratives about their own lives, and taking the 1999 trucker strike as a critical event, this work points at possible reconfigurations concerning truckers' experience in exerting their profession. The continuous economic decadence that affects this category throughout the last decades, specially in the 90's, is shown by the July 1999 and latter strikes. As a critical event, the July 1999 strike condenses a decay process involving this worker's category, setting at the social plane, therefore collective, the problems faced by them. As a critical event, the strike points towards changes concerning the truckers' experience, bringing to light new forros to which the profession is set nowadays. Considering today' s context, one of the main question this work points at is, on the long run, the slowly disappearance of autonomous independent truckers. The not always positive changes do not suppress, therefore, a more romantic aspect of the profession. This aspect is not opposed by the present, with its strikes and difficulties lived by the truckers, but goes side by side to it and is recovered in the truckers daily life / Mestrado / Mestre em Antropologia

Orientador: Maria da Gloria Marcondes Gohn / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Educação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-04T06:58:14Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Piton_IvaniaMarini_D.pdf: 16793610 bytes, checksum: 650c1b4ae1d6e13bcc5605d79089cf1e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2005 / Resumo: A tese busca a análise e a compreensão das políticas educacionais e do movimento docente na Educação Básica Paranaense entre os anos 1995 a 2002, período em que o Estado do Paraná foi governado por Jaime Lerner em dois mandatos consecutivos. A partir da análise do contexto mundial, nacional e estadual, trata das refOImas educativas e dos conflitos docentes em tal período, avaliando as forças de sustentação e de contestação das reformas. As reformas educativas se deram no contexto da reestruturação capitalista, conduzi das pelo neoliberalismo que, enquanto normatizador econômico da atual fase da globalização atua no contexto social amplo e de forma específica nos sistemas educativos. Tais reformas se deram sob pressão das instituições multilaterais de financiamento: BM (BIRD) e BID e graças à submissão do governo às racionalidades do capital transnacional. A tese examina os efeitos das políticas neoliberais e de seus aliados - o neoconservadorismo e a ideologia pós-moderna, na função social da escola (nos processos de conhecimento e construção da cidadania ativa) e no movimento sindical docente. Apresenta, ainda, como os modelos e ideologias da atual fase do capitalismo buscam mercantilizar a educação, reduzir os espaços públicos estatais e intervir nos espaços de contestação e resistência a expansão global do capitalismo neoliberal. A pesquisa mostra que as reformas educativas no Paraná orientadas pelo BM (BIRD) e pelo BID além de ressignificar os espaços educativos, tratando a educação como um campo sem especificidade e a serviço do mercado flexível buscaram solapar um importante espaço de contestação, o sindicalismo docente, para assim, desconstruir as resistências às reformas. O jogo de forças de sustentação das reformas por um lado e, de contestação das reformas por outro, se deram entre a SEED/PR e a APP/Sindicato, sendo que, tal jogo gerou muitos conflitos docentes no período pesquisado. O trabalho conclui que a educação básica no Estado do Paraná passou por uma modernização periférica graças à lógica economicista-empresarial das reformas que acentuou o caráter dualista e exc1udente da escola pública. Conclui ainda que, no jogo de forças que se estabeleceu no Estado, a APP/Sindicato apesar de suas práticas e resistências terem sido muitas vezes reativa, exerceu um papel defmitivo na manutenção dos direitos dos trabalhadores em educação e na busca a construção de uma identidade sindical com caráter combativo, pois os múltiplos conflitos docentes que esta desencadeou inviabilizaram a implantação de aspectos essenciais das políticas neoliberais / Abstract: This tbesis seeks for an analysis and a comprebension of tbe educational politics and tbe teacbing movement in tbe Basic Education of Paraná between tbe years 1995 and 2002, a period in wbich the State of Paraná was govemed by Jaime Lemer in two consecutive tenns. Starting witb tbe analysis of the world, national and state contexts, educational reforms and also of teaching conflicts in tbis period are dealt witb, evaluating the forces of the sustenance and dispute of the reforms. The educational refonns were given in the context of the capitalistic restruction, conducted by neoliberalism tbat, while being an economic normalizer of the actual phase of globalization acts in the ample social context and in a specific way of tbe educative systems. Such reforms were given under tbe pressure of tbe multilateral institutions of financing: BM (BIRD) and BID and tbanks to tbe submission of tbe govemment, the rationalities of tbe transnational capital. The tbesis examines the effects of the neoliberal politics and of those connected with it - tbe neoconservatism and the postmodero ideology, in the social function of tbe school (in tbe processes of knowlege and construction of the active citizenship) and tbe teaching union movement It furtber presents, how models and ideologies of the actual pbase of capitalism seek to market the education, reduce tbe nationalized state periods and intervene in tbe periods of challenge and resistance to tbe global expansion of the neoliberal capitalismo The research shows tbat the educative reforms in Paraná orientated by BM (BIRD), beyond signifying tbe educative periods, treat tbe education like an unspecilaized field and a flexible market service trying to ruin an important period of challenge, the teaching unionism, as sucb, breaking down tbe resistances towards tbe reformations. The act of forces sustaining the reforms on one hand, and the challenge of reform on the otber hand, were given between tbe SEED/PR and the APP/Union, being that tbis action generated many teaching conflicts in the period researched. The assignment conc1uded that tbe basic education in the State of Paraná underwent a peripheral modemization thanks to the economist-business logic ofthe refonns that accented tbe dualistic and exclusive character of the public schooL It was furtber concluded that, in the act of forces that was established in the State, tbe APPlUnion exerted a definitive role in tbe maintenance of tbe workers rights in education searching to construct a union identity with a combatant character, since the multiple teaching conflicts unleashed the impractibility of implanting the essential aspects of the neoliberal politics / Doutorado / Politicas de Educação e Sistemas Educativos / Doutor em Educação

M.A. (Human Resource Management) / This investigation was undertaken in order to determine as to whether a connection existed between political occurrences and strikes in South Africa during the period 1910 to 1990. The strike phenomenon was studied within the framework of the ten political phases that occurred from 1910 to 1990. These phases were allotted in terms of the respective white political governments and leaders. Accent was placed on the promulgation of labour laws and specifically, on the protective role thereof towards white workers, but also on the discriminatory effect thereof on black workers ...

M.A. (Industrial Relations) / Since black employees were legally allowed to form unions and organise themselves, unionism has grown tremendously. The occurrence of strikes of some form or other has shown a rising tendency since the implementation of the recommendations of the Wiehahn Commission of Inquiry into Labour Legislation in 1979. As a result, business enterprises have suffered considerable financial losses on account of a loss of man-hours and man-days. The aim of this study is to formulate juridical and practical guidelines for the industrial relations practitioner in order to deal with strikes pro-actively and to prevent them if possible, and to manage them responsibly and professionally if they do occur.

The basic structures of collective bargaining in South Africa have evolved since industrialisation, through the Wiehahn-Commission era until the Farlam one and beyond, resulting in a number of legislative changes from 1924 to 2014. While dealing with collective bargaining, it is not possible to divorce the powerful history of mining from the South African story, from the diamond fields in Kimberley to the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand in 1886, where the mine employees’ focused on cheap, unskilled labour and migrant system in the 1900s to the tragic events at Marikana in 2012. In the advent of the industry revolution, employment relationships changed as competitive demands placed a great need for advancing economic developments which are often expressed through collective-bargaining. The objective of collective bargaining is to arrive at an agreement between the employer and employees to determine mutually beneficial terms and conditions of employment such agreement may prohibit unions to embark on an industrial action for as long as it is in place. Strikes became important during the Industrial Revolution, when many worked in factories and mines. Often when employees’ demands are not met, they resort to strike action. Strike action is when a number of employees stop rendering their service in protest to express their grievances. These strikes are usually led by labour unions to get better pay, working hours or working conditions during collective bargaining as a last resort. While trade union leadership fails to advance employees’ cause, employees resort to informal alternative structures to negotiate on their behalf. South Africans have a tradition of taking to the streets in protest when unhappy about issues and this tradition did not spring up during the apartheid era but has been around from as early as 1922 to date. Protests in South Africa today draw from past repertoires and at the same time push for new political practices and directions. Strikes are often used to: Pressure governments to change its policies like in the Rand Revolt; Strikes can destabilise the rule of a particular political party like a series of strikes by blacks in the 1970s and 1980s including the 1973 Durban dockworkers and the 1987 miners’ strikes; Strikes are often part of a broader social movement taking the form of a campaign of civil resistance like Treatment Action Campaign and community struggles such Abahlali Base Mjondolo. On the strike issues in South Africa, the researcher draws from the terrible incident that transpired in August 2012 at Lonmin Mine-Marikana and how it has affected the collective bargaining landscape in South Africa. The first real and significant labour unrest, the Witwatersrand miner strike rocked South Africa to the core in 1922 and in 2012, ninety years later the violent strike by the Rock Operational Drillers at Lonmin following the Marikana massacre and as such did not enjoy statutory protection under the LRA because was classified as wildcat strike. Normally, a wildcat strike constitutes a violation of a collective bargaining agreement in place and as such is not protected unless a union joins it and ratifies the protest. The union may, however, discipline its members for participating in a wildcat strike and impose fines. Among other things miners mainly demanded a wage increment of R12500 per month. The fight between AMCU and NUM for organisational rights also found its way into the equation. A strike wave, not only linked to the mining sector, made 2012 the most protest filled year since the end of apartheid, rolled out across South Africa, closing some industrial operations and crippling others. Commentators argue that the strike wave emerged from a landscape of extreme inequality and poverty, made intolerable by the additional financial burdens arising from the migrant labour system. These factors influenced the industrial action and institutions of collective bargaining comprising of both company and union structures and processes, were found wanting in their ability to address the root causes of the crisis. The post-Marikana strike wave made a mark in the workers struggle movement as it drew in thousands of workers to join AMCU and at the same time weakening NUM, the then majority union. The strike led to the rise and growth of AMCU which was seen by miners as the driver for change. The 2012 strike wave and the Marikana massacre not only changed the balance of forces on the ground against the NUM, but also generated divisions within COSATU. The divisions were between those who decided to remain deaf to the workers’ call for transformation and those who had already realised that a decisive turn in economic policy was needed to avoid a social, economic and political crisis. In the aftermath of the strike, a number community struggles increased as 2012 began and on the other side, a number of splinter groups from COSATU mushroomed which was hobbled by in fights. NUM’s collapse is indeed part of a series of recent failures for COSATU.

Strike action by employees is globally used in matters of mutual interest in order to place pressure on employers to meet their demands although the right to strike is not contained in any of the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) conventions or recommendations. Two conventions of the ILO are however relevant in the context of strikes and lockouts.1 The first is the Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention 87 of 1948 and the second convention of importance is the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention 98 of 1949, both of which was ratified by South Africa and accordingly binds South Africa to comply with their provisions. The ILO appointed legal experts to assist the drafters of the Labour Relations Act,2 (LRA) in order to comply with these conventions. Furthermore section 3 of the LRA provides that the LRA must be interpreted in compliance with the international law obligations of South Africa. Section 27 of the Interim Constitution3 made provision for both the right to strike and the right of employers to lockout. In the proposed text of the final Constitution the recourse of the employer to lockout was not included. The text of the final Constitution was submitted to the Constitutional Court (CC) for certification in that it had to decide whether the new text of the final Constitution complied with the constitutional principles agreed to by the different political parties as the inviolable framework for the final Constitution. The CC delivered its judgment in Ex parte Chairperson of the Constitutional Assembly: In re Certification of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa4 and concluded that the omission of a right to lockout from the final Constitution does not conflict with constitutional principles. The CC did not agree with the argument, raised by Business South Africa, based on the proposition that the right of employers to lockout is the necessary equivalent to the right of workers to strike and that therefore, in order to treat workers and employers equally, both should be recognized in the new text. The result of this judgment is that employees’ right to strike is expressly protected by section 23 of the Constitution whilst the right of employers to lockout their employees is not expressly entrenched. The employers’ right is however protected by implication through the express protection of the right to bargain collectively in terms of section 23(5) of the Constitution and section 64 of the LRA.

The principle of the right to strike is Internationally recognised. Although the right to strike is not set out explicitly in the International Labour Organizations (ILO) Conventions and Recommendations. It has been discussed on several occasions in the International Labour Conference during the course of preparatory work on instruments dealing with related topics, but for various reasons this has never given rise to international standards (Conventions or Recommendations) directly governing the right to strike. The ILO has determined that the right to strike can be derived from the right to Freedom of Association. The ILO Committee does however recognises certain limitations on the right to strike such as not finding any objection to national legislation that would prohibit the right to strike of armed or police forces. Both the Committee on Freedom of Association and the Committee of experts were also mindful, where public servants are concerned, that the recognition of the right to association of public servants in no way prejudges the question of the right of public servants to strike. The ILO also makes provision for the establishment of essential services as to ensure the continuation of services were the interruption of such would endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or part of the population. In this limitation it however holds that a “minimum safety service” may be imposed to ensure the safety of persons, the prevention of accidents and the safety of machinery and equipment In our Constitution, the supreme law of the Country, the right to strike is enshrined and protected in section 23 under the bill of rights. The Constitution however allows enabling legislation, under specific circumstances, to limit a right listed in section 23. The Labour Relations Act (LRA) places a limitation on the right to strike, specifically providing that no person may take part in a strike if that person is engaged in an essential service. Because the right to strike is so important, a limitation of these kind needs to be justified and, to be justified it needs, among other things, to be limited. In section 72 of the LRA provision is made for a minimum service within a designated essential service. Therefore, the ambit of the designated essential service is shrunk to the minimum service and those employees who were denied the right to strike while the broader essential service designation was in place, but who fall outside the defined minimum service, regains the right to strike. The concept of minimum services has however became a matter of regular discussion and debate. The concept of minimum services is not defined to the letter but it is regarded as the minimum service an industry or workplace would require as to ensure interruption of services would not endanger the life, personal safety or health of the whole or part of the population. Our legislatures have also been grappling with the concept of essential and minimum services. They have developed a comprehensive set of amendments trying to address some of the concerns in the composition, powers and functions of the Essential Services Committee (ESC). It is debatable if these proposed amendments would bring forth the necessary change to address these concerns or just become a further bureaucratic hindrance and due to the extreme complexity may even pose a limitation on the right to strike. There is also no differentiation made in the current labour legislation and the proposed amendments, between the public service and the private sector in application of the principle of essential and minimum services. Implementation of these principles in the public services has shown to be extremely challenging. Part of the proposed amendments however makes provision for the specific inclusion of government in the composition of the ESC. It is viewed by the drafters, that the introduction of government nominees to be an innovation to ensure that government is adequately represented on the essential services committee in its capacity as an employer, as a high proportion of essential service matters occur within the public service. This may be viewed as contrary to International standards as the ILO makes clear provision for a differentiated interpretation of the right to freedom of association, the right to strike, essential services and minimum services for people performing functions in the name of the State (public servants). The concept of public servant varies considerably from one country to another. Germany within their governance structure makes provision for a differentiation between civil servants and public servants and the labour rights the two groups may have. In France the military, police and prison services does not have the right to strike. In India public service employees have very limited organising and collective bargaining rights. In Brazil the police and the military do not have the right to strike and there are no legal provisions concerning the right to strike for civil servants. This is in strong contrast with the South African model. The South African Constitution and National Legislation does not allow for a differentiation in the application of labour legislation in the public service and the private sector. The application of the principles of labour relations and more specifically that of the right to strike and the determination of essential services must differ in the public services from that of the private sector. The public service is unique in that when workers in strike action it is not a purely defined labour process between an employer and employees but the public at large becomes a third player within the process. When public servants engage in industrial action they do not only deprive the community of certain rights, but indirectly deprive themselves from the same rights. There has been a resistant fear to implement the provisions of minimum services within the designated essential services within the public service, mainly because of the challenges in conceptualization of the practical implementation of the same. The environment created by the LRA does not specifically provide for the unique circumstances of the public service. The right to strike is a fundamental right for workers and therefore public servants won’t forfeit such. There is a recognition that the State needs to deliver services which will necessitate the application of the principle of essential services. However the answer will be in how minimum services is determined within these essential services. An answer that may not necessarily be contained within the Labour Relations Act.