COSATU heads into its 15th National Congress promising to rebuild worker power, defend jobs and organise workers in an increasingly precarious labour market. But more than four decades after its formation, does the federation still wield the influence it once did and is it adapting quickly enough to represent today’s workforce? Africa Melane speaks to Dr Khwezi Mabasa, Lecturer and Researcher at the Centre for Researching Education and Labour, about how COSATU’s role has evolved, its relationship with government and whether it still fulfils the function it was established to perform.

COSATU heads into its 15th National Congress promising to rebuild worker power, defend jobs and organise workers in an increasingly precarious labour market. But more than four decades after its formation, does the federation still wield the influence it once did and is it adapting quickly enough to represent today’s workforce? Africa Melane speaks to Dr Khwezi Mabasa, Lecturer and Researcher at the Centre for Researching Education and Labour, about how COSATU’s role has evolved, its relationship with government and whether it still fulfils the function it was established to perform.