Att: The Editor – Business Day
Email: busday@bdfm.co.za

Your edition Friday 9^th January 2015

The business community and especially the small business community is extremely fickle.  When business people open newspapers and see that the electricity supply is fragile and the rand is being buffeted they are extremely reluctant to create employment and even invest in their own businesses.  As a labour lawyer I receive instructions to draft contracts of employment for senior employees.  This type of instruction has become negligible over the past two years.  Although the business confidence declined last month we must see this in the context as a decline over the last two years.

The perception of the business community is that our government ruling party and the trade union movement are essentially doing everything in their power to retard business growth.  This perception is translated into reality when we see incredibly negative amendments to the Labour Relations Act being pushed through coupled with reports about the lack of service delivery in at least seven of our provinces governed by the ruling party.  It is a small wonder that any foreigner would want to invest in business in South Africa let alone our local business people who have been voting with their feet by shrinking their businesses whenever they are able.

Even with the drop in the fuel price there has been no excitement.  It is up to each and every single voter in 2016 to send a message to the government that the status quo cannot remain.

MICHAEL BAGRAIM

9 January 2015