Labour Minister Mildred Oliphant yesterday said union leaders were not doing their jobs - as many workers nowadays tried to settle disputes on their own, and lost, because they had no union support. "While on the one hand this could be attributed to the fact that not all our labour centres and institutions are functioning optimally, the bulk of the complaints stem from the lack of service to members and the fact that over 70% of workers are not unionised," Oliphant told Cosatu delegates at the elective conference yesterday.She added: "Some workers take a chance to represent themselves at CCMA and other dispute resolution platforms. And, because they have no idea of how these processes work, they end up losing strong cases that, if they had proper representation, they would have won without breaking a sweat."Oliphant said infighting and personal ambition had replaced unions' commitment to workers.Two Cosatu affiliate unions - the SA Municipal Workers Union and SA Transport and Allied Workers Union - have each experienced breakaways, with former leaders forming rival unions.Oliphant said the proliferation of new unions - there are currently 185 registered trade unions and 23 labour federations - had weakened the workers' cause.Said Oliphant: "Our labour law was built on the foundation of strong trade unions. Quite frankly this foundation has of late become very shaky."Oliphant also said unions failed workers by:Resorting to strikes too quickly,Not conducting a cost-and-benefit analysis before initiating a strike, andUsing strikes to settle scores with rival unions...