"We view plans to retrench workers as an act of ultimate betrayal‚ especially after the government's decision to increase VAT after promising not to do so‚" said Ntshalintshali.
He said Cosatu had no reason to support the ANC if it abandons its own manifesto. "We therefore demand a moratorium on all retrenchments until the promised jobs summit has been held‚" said Ntshalintshali.
He also threatened that Cosatu would pull out from the planned jobs summit.
"The ANC should know that it will pay a price for failing to balance the demands of capital and demands of labour‚" he said. “We are not going to compromise in our firm demand for the economy to be restructured with a bias towards labour and the poor.”