THE PREAMBLE TO THE NUMSA CONSTITUTION

We, the members of the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa, firmly commit ourselves to a united South Africa, free of oppression and economic exploitation.

We believe that this can only be achieved under the leadership of an organised and united working class. Our experience has taught us that to achieve this goal we must:

(a) fight and oppose discrimination in all its forms within the Union, the factories and in society;

(b) strive for maximum unity amongst organised metalworkers and organise every unorganised metalworker into our national industrial Union;

(c) ensure that all levels of our Union are democratically structured and controlled by the worker members themselves through elected worker committees;

(d) encourage democratic worker leadership and organisation in our factories and in all spheres of society;

(e) reinforce and encourage progressive international worker-to-worker contact so as to strengthen the worldwide society of metalworkers.

We call on all metalworkers that identify with these principles and aims to join us and the metalworkers we represent, as comrades in the struggle ahead.

We call on all metalworkers to set aside any prejudices they may have and strive for unity under the guiding slogan of the international working class:

“From each according to their ability; to each according to their needs”

We enclose  herewith our Constitution as amended by our National Congress in 2012 and by our Special National Congress in 201