Beyond Bargaining Councils: Non-Union Worker Voice in South Africa’s Informal Economy

William Manga Mokofe ORCID iD

Issue: Vol. 6 No.12 Article 43 pp. 3944 – 3508
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561243 | Published online 28th  November, 2025
© 2025 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Views: 116
117 Downloads

DOWNLOAD PDF

This article explored the dynamics of the voice of non-union workers within South Africa’s informal economy, a vital but institutionally marginalised sector. It investigated how informal workers, excluded from formal structures such as trade unions and bargaining councils, create alternative forms of collective representation, resistance, and negotiation. Using a qualitative, interdisciplinary approach that blends labour studies, socio-legal analysis, and grounded case studies, the research uncovered diverse mechanisms of worker voice, including informal associations, faith-based initiatives, digital platforms, and NGO-led advocacy. The findings revealed that while these forms of expression demonstrate adaptability and contextual sensitivity, they are hampered by legal invisibility, weak institutional support, and fragmented structures. Despite these challenges, they highlight innovative pathways through which labour agencies can thrive under conditions of informality and state disengagement. The article contributes to debates on inclusive labour governance by proposing a hybrid model that moves beyond union-centric paradigms. It calls for the formal recognition of alternative voice mechanisms, the integration of grassroots organising into labour policy, and broader multi-stakeholder support. These recommendations seek to foster a more equitable and representative industrial relations framework that aligns with the lived realities of informal workers in South Africa and comparable global contexts.

Keywords: Informal, Economy, Non-Union Voice, Collective Representation, Labour Relations, Worker Agency, Advocacy Campaigns,  South Africa

Alfers, L. “‘If I Do Not Have a Home, Where Do I Go?’: Home and Housing for Women in the Informal Economy.”  Environment and Urbanisation 28, no. 2 (2016): 525–36.

———. “Organising for Social Protection: Grassroots Women Workers’ Experiences in the Informal Economy.” Development Southern Africa 36, no. 3 (2019): 357–71.

Alfers, L., F. Lund, and R. Moussie. “ Women’s Informal Workers and Care: A Review of Evidence on the Gendered Nature of Informal Work and Unpaid Care Responsibilities,” 2018. https://www.wiego.org.

Alfers, L., F. Lund, and R. Moussie. “Informal Workers and the Social Protection Response to COVID-19.”  International Social Security Review 71, no. 2 (2018): 95–11.

Ally, S. From Servants to Workers: South African Domestic Workers and the Democratic State. Cornell University Press, 2009.

Banks, N., D. Hulme, and M. Edwards. “ NGOs, States, and Donors Revisited: Still Too Close for Comfort? .” World Development 66 (2015): 707–18.

Bénit-Gbaffou, C., and S. Oldfield. “ Living Informality: Everyday Practices and Politics of Street Trading in Durban, South Africa.”  African Studies 70, no. 2 (2011): 235–55.

Berg, J., M. Furrer, E. Harmon, U., Rani, and M. S. Silberman. Digital Labour Platforms and the Future of Work: Towards Decent Work in the Online World. Geneva: International Labour Organisation, 2021.

Buhlungu, S. A Paradox of Victory: COSATU and the Democratic Transformation in South Africa. University of KwaZulu-Natal Press, 2010.

Chen, M., J. Vanek, and M. Carr. “ Women and Men in the Informal Economy: A Statistical Picture (3rd Ed.).”  International Labour Organisation and WIEGO, 2019. https://www.wiego.org.

Chen, Martha Alter. “The Informal Economy: Definitions, Theories and Policies,” 2012.

Crush, J., and G. Tawodzera. “ Xenophobia, International Migration, and Development.”  Development Southern Africa 31, no. 2 (2014): 148–52.

Devenish, A. “ Churches, Workers, and Social Justice: Reimagining Alliances in the Post-Apartheid City.” Journal of Southern African Studies 46, no. 5 (2020): 893–910.

Fairwork Foundation. “ Fairwork South Africa Report 2022: Labour Standards in the Platform Economy,” 2022. https://fair.work/wp-content/uploads/sites/97/2022/10/Fairwork-South-Africa-Report-2022.pdf.

Freeman, R. B., and J. L. Medoff.  What Do Unions Do? Basic Books, 1984.

Graham, Mark, Isis Hjorth, and Vili Lehdonvirta. “Digital Labour and Development: Impacts of Global Digital Labour Platforms and the Gig Economy on Worker Livelihoods.” Transfer: European Review of Labour and Research 23, no. 2 (2017): 135–62.

Heery, Edmund. “The Representation Gap and the Future of Worker Representation.” Industrial Relations Journal 40, no. 4 (2009): 324–36.

Hirschman, A. O.  Exit, Voice, and Loyalty: Responses to Decline in Firms, Organisations, and States. Harvard University Press, 1970.

International Labour Organisation (ILO). “ Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy Recommendation, 2015 (No. 204),” 2015. https://www.ilo.org/global/publications/ilo-bookstore/order-online/books/WCMS_222979/lang–en/index.htm.

Labour Relations Act of 1995 (LRA). (n.d.).

Lund, F., and C. Skinner. “ Transforming the Informal Economy: The South African Experience.” Development Southern Africa 32, no. 2 (2015): 132–47.

Mutsvairo, B., and D. Katamba. “Community Media, Digital Activism, and Social Change: The Role of Community Radio in the Digital Age.” Journal of African Media Studies 12, no. 3 (2020): 373–88.

Oldfield, S., and C. Bénit-Gbaffou. “Negotiating Urban Governance: Community Associations and Local Government in Johannesburg, South Africa.”  Urban Studies 56 (2019): 2736–53.

Paret, Marcel. “Violence and Democracy in South Africa’s Community Protests.” Review of African Political Economy 42, no. 143 (2015): 107–23.

Roever, S., and C. Skinner. “Street Vendors and Cities.” Environment and Urbanisation 28, no. 2 (2016): 359–74.

Rosenblat, A., and L. Stark. “ Algorithmic Labour and Information Asymmetries: A Case Study of Uber’s Drivers.”  International Journal of Communication 10 (2016): 3758–84.

Scholz, T. Platform Cooperativism: Challenging the Corporate Sharing Economy.  Rosa Luxemburg Stiftung, 2016.

Seekings, J.  The UDF: A History of the United Democratic Front in South Africa, 1983-1991.  David Philip Publishers, 2010.

Skinner, C. “Challenging City Imaginaries: Street Traders’ Struggles in Warwick Junction.” In Urban Africa: Changing Contours of Survival in the City, edited by E. Pieterse and A. Simone, 242–64. Zed Books, 2010.

Socio-Economic Rights Institute of South Africa (SERI). “The Rights of Informal Traders in South Africa: A Legal Analysis and Case Studies,” 2015. https://seri-sa.org.

Statistics South Africa. Quarterly Labour Force Survey, Q4 2023. Pretoria: Stats SA, 2023. https://www.statssa.gov.za.

Turok, Ivan, and Jacqueline Borel-Saladin. “Is Urbanisation in South Africa on a Sustainable Trajectory?” Development Southern Africa 31, no. 5 (2014): 675–91.

Williams, C. C.  Beyond Business Informality: Understanding the Informal Economy in Developing Countries. Routledge, 2014.

Women in Informal Employment: Globalising and Organising (WIEGO). “ Informal Economy Monitoring Study, South Africa Report,” 2020. https://www.wiego.org.

Dr. William Manga Mokofe (LLD), (LLM), (LLB) Senior Law Lecturer Law, Walter Sisulu University Chairperson, Research and Higher Degrees Committee, Faculty of Law, Humanities and social sciences Walter Sisulu University, South Africa  Advocate of the High Court of South Africa, Researcher and Author.

William Manga Mokofe. “Beyond Bargaining Councils: Non-Union Worker Voice in South Africa’s Informal Economy.” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 6, no. 12 (2025): 3944 – 3508, https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.202561243.

© 2025 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Articles in this Issue

About Journal