Trade union founding president dies

The founding president of the South African Municipal Workers’ Union (SAMWU) Petrus Mashishi died on Wednesday morning.

“The family informed us that Comrade Mashishi passed away at his home in Soweto this morning at age 82‚” the trade union said in a media statement.

Mashishi was elected Samwu president at its inaugural congress in 1987 after several trade unions merged‚ including the Transport and General Workers’ Union (TGWN).

“Comrade Mashishi was loved and respected by municipal workers across the country which earned him the title of ‘The Union’s Man’. We are therefore saddened and devastated by his passing‚ the passing of a man who steered Samwu towards its militancy in the workplace.”