On September 9 and 10 2010, Ditsela in partnership with CCMA, Social Law Project and Merseta hosted “The 2010 workers and the law symposium”, themed “A crossroads in the quest for socio-economic justice? Workers and the law beyond the LRA”

Over the past few years the symposia, formerly called Labour law symposium had traditionally focused its attention on the developments and reviews of labour law and related legislation.

In the light of recent litigation experience and trends in various courts, including the constitutional court, these and other institutions have become popular outlets for seeking redress and restoration of socio-economic justice.

As workplace and communities struggle converge, these developments reflect the quest for quality of both working and community life by workers and their families.

While we have a political democracy, it is common cause that that the fundamental challenges we face in building a more just and equitable society is immense.

Building such a society requires a better, more lucid articulation of the inter-connections between the law in general and the political economy in the country and the world.

The objectives of the symposium were to:

• Reflect on the current developments in the relevant fields of law and its impact on workers and society.

• Analyse legal case studies on the key social and economic success and setbacks faced by workers and communities.

• Locate law in the context of the political economy of the country.

• Highlight what labour movements need to consider in building a society based on socio-economic justice.

Source

Numsa News No 3, October 2010