Rising labour and input costs ‘pushing production out of SA’: Neasa

Ntsakisi Maswanganyi reports that National Employers' Association of SA (Neasa) CEO Gerhard Papenfus said on Thursday that SA was losing out on business and opportunities to create more jobs because of escalating labour costs and other input price increases.  Employers unable to cope with higher labour costs were having goods produced elsewhere and brought into SA as finished products, which compromises local jobs, Papenfus said, adding that "Each product that we import means we have exported a couple of jobs."  Manufacturers recently said they were increasingly mechanising as labour strikes were too disruptive.   Papenfus stated that productivity did not match the steep wage increases.  "The term too expensive must be understood within a context of productivity.  Less skilled employees cannot expect high wages.  When we make the entry-level wages too high, these people will not find work."  Dennis George of the Federation of Unions of SA (Fedusa) said that the blame should not be exclusively placed on workers if productivity did not improve.  "There are certain factors that are beyond the control of the workers.  Productivity is linked to many things, including capital investment (by companies)."

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