Jay Naidoo - First General Secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions - Labor Solidarity Podcast

Empathy Media Lab

“Apartheid used racial discrimination as an instrument to maintain the cheap labor system. So the core of apartheid was a cheap labor system, based on black exploitation.”

Jay Naidoo is a South African anti-apartheid activist, trade unionist, and author. Jay served as the first general secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions from 1985 to 1993. Following South Africa's transition to democracy in the early 1990s, Jay served as a cabinet minister under the late President Nelson Mandela, from 1994 to 1999. Following his tenure in public office, Jay also served as chairperson of the Development Bank of Southern Africa. Jay is a respected elder who continues to mentor young leaders in South Africa and the rest of the African continent.

Since leaving government, Jay has worked in various capacities for the United Nations and other international organizations. He currently is a member of the board of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, which works to improve good governance and leadership in Africa. He also serves as a trustee of the Earthrise Trust, dedicated to rural development Naidoo’s autobiography, Fighting for Justice: A Lifetime of Political and Social Activism, was published in 2010.

You can learn more about Jay’s thinking by reading his book, Change: Organising Tomorrow, Today

About the Labor Solidarity Podcast

The Labor Solidarity Podcast highlights the work of labor leaders while discussing historic struggles and the importance of organizing with the goal of building international labor solidarity. The Labor Podcast is hosted by Elise Bryant and Evan Papp.

Learn more at: https://www.empathymedialab.com/laborsolidarity

The Labor Solidarity Podcast is an Empathy Media Lab production and we are a proud member of The Labor Radio Podcast Network. Learn more: https://wlo.link/@empathymedialab

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