African Studies Institute - Seminar Papers

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1974 - 19772

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Author: search.filters.author.Spandau, Arnt

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    A study in the dual labour market of a South African plant
    (1974-07) Spandau, Arnt
    Legal and customary barriers of racial employment patterns prevent South African companies from optimizing labour input relationships. The result of these barriers is imperfections in the internal labour market which manifest themselves as follows : i) The marginal rates of substitution of White for Black workers do not equal the ratios of the wage rates of the two factors; (ii) Relative to their occupational abilities, Whites are overrepresented in high-graded jobs, while Blacks are overrepresented in low-graded jobs. During the process of the growth of the firms, there are certain intermediate occupations where the replacement of Whites by Blacks does actually take place. This process of replacement has certain elements of inertia. Abrupt and visible changes would be looked upon as being contrary to the ‘South African way of life’ (1). In the past, Black occupational advance in South African manufacturing industries was cut off, by and large, at the level of operative machine minding. During recent years, Blacks have also advanced into certain clerical, sales, supervisory and control positions. With large employers of Blacks, clerical personnel administration' for Non-Whites is largely nowadays done by Blacks themselves. (iii) In the intermediate occupations, Whites tend to be paid wages in excess of their marginal value product, and Blacks below. Racial pay discrimination also percolates into the areas of fringe benefits, such as health protection, annual leave, and into every-day communication. It is the purpose of this paper to examine the factors which prevent the attainment of equilibrium in the labour markets under conditions of South African- racial discrimination. The data were collected during the months October and November, 1972, when the writer spent some weeks on the premises of a bottling plant in the Transvaal. (2) In order to preserve the anonymity of those who freely supplied information - managers, workers, and informed outsiders - the plant in question will be called Company X.
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    The consequences of a hypothetical economic boycott on South Africa
    (1977-11) Spandau, Arnt
    By a boycott we mean the refusal by persons to deal with one or more other persons. The purpose of the boycott is generally to punish, or induce abandonment of a course of action, by economic pressure. Likewise, an international boycott refers to the refusal of citizens of a state to trade, or enter into other economic relations with the citizens of another state, in order to manifest resentment or bring pressure. A boycott is to be distinguished from measures of economic retortion such as reprisals, sanctions, embargoes or blockades, which are initiated by a government to bring pressure upon a state guilty of unfriendly, reprehensible or illegal behaviour. Boycotts, however, merge into such official procedures if they are encouraged or organized by government....As far as South Africa is concerned, there has been a notable tendency for an increase in the calls for an economic boycott.... An articulate demand for an investment boycott was made last year in a joint statement issued by Chief Gatsha Buthelesi and Dr. C.F. Beyers Naude.... It is not the purpose of this paper to assess the validity of the theologians' reasoning. Suffice it to say that social and economic devastation is a most unlikely scenario from which South Africa will emerge as a peaceful multi-racial society. In my opinion it is rapid economic growth, and NOT the enforced abandonment of prosperous international economic links, which is best suited effectively to further the case of the South African Black. Be this as it may, let us look now at the consequences which a hypothetical economic boycott would have for South Africa.