Work Restructuring in Post-Apartheid South Africa

Abstract

South Africa's triple transition-toward political democracy, economic liberalization, and racial equity-has generated a variety of responses at workplace level. Rather than a uniform response, a hybrid mix of managerial strategies is emerging that reveals both continuities and discontinuities with past practices. We argue that the challenge facing the South African workplace is to balance the contradictory demands of efficiency, employee rights, and equity arising out of the triple transition. What sort of a trade off, if any, between these competing pressures is required and what is politically feasible remains to be seen. What is clear from our case studies is that the challenge cannot be met unless the legacy of the apartheid workplace regime is decisively overcome.