Labouring for a better life: the struggle of Anna Scheepers and Lucy Mvubelo for better labour conditions, 1960-1980

[摘要] English: This dissertation aims to highlight the importance of two formidable female tradeunion leaders, Anna Scheepers and Lucy Mvubelo, women from different cultures, intheir struggle to improve labour conditions. Through an extensive examination ofprivate collections, periodicals, books, dissertations and archival material a picture ofwho these two ladies were and their contribution made as leaders in the garmentindustry could be constructed. The dissertation has no pretensions of providing eithera comprehensive history of the Garment Workers Union (GWUSA) or biographies ofScheepers and Mvubelo. Instead themes were highlighted.These themes were examined in the light of the overall theme of the dissertation -labouring for a better life. Documents from the GWU archives illuminated thehistory of the open industrial unions and contained interesting information on generalleft-wing labour polities. This information on the early history of the GWU andNational Union of Clothing Workers (NUCW) provided the necessary backgroundinformation on the environment and times Scheepers and Mvubelo worked in.The personal papers of Scheepers and Mvubelo gave insight in the correspondencebetween these ladies and their professional relationship. The GarmentWorker/Klerewerker proved invaluable in determining a chronology of events intheir lives. The Wiehahn- and Riekert (government) Reports introduced a new era forBlack labour in South Afriea. Mvubelo and Scheepers fought for all theirrecommendations.A short biographical overview of the history and character of each of the two ladieswere given in order to understand why they dedicated their entire lives to the garmentworker industry and to be able to determine what or who moulded them to become thepersons they were. Finally the study attempts to ascertain how Scheepers and Mvubelo achieved betterconditions and the problems they experienced in the above-mentioned struggle. Thisresearch aims to show that Scheepers and Mvubelo had much in common. Theirviews on job reservation, racism, disinvestment and apartheid underline thesimilarities in their attitude toward these issues. Scheepers and Mvubelo had anenormous impact in ensuring a better life for all workers.

[发布机构] University of the Free State