Madam Chair, as the Minister has just stated and as we said during the Bill's first reading, the Bill deals with the consequences of Transnet's restructuring, with particular reference to Metrorail and SAA - South African Airways. It was also meant to protect the pension benefits accumulated by Transnet employees, with regard to the tax-free amounts that they accumulated before March 1990.
An agreement was reached after a protracted strike earlier this year and we wanted to ensure that in the processing of this Bill we did not inadvertently detract from it. To this extent, we kept the unions and Transnet abreast of all developments, changes and the committee's progress. We spent a lot of time tying to improve the writing and style of the Bill to make it much more user-friendly and easier to read. The Minister himself referred to the antiquated wording in the original Act.
Some of the substantive changes included the following: to formalise the initial transfer from the Transport Pension Fund to the Transnet subfund; to remove the veto powers of the Transnet Pension Fund valuator in determining the value of assets to be reassigned from one subfund to another; to provide for the general powers of the board of trustees as opposed to the subfund board powers; to provide that special rules rather than the general rules deal with the outsourcing of liabilities - special rules are those rules that are applicable to subfund boards; to remove the unfettered discretion of the board of trustees; to determine the allocation of benefits, costs and losses or liabilities between subfunds of the Transnet Pension Fund, and this means that any aggrieved party will be able to go to court to challenge the decision of the board; to remove the obligation on the board in terms section 9 to stop the payment of the pension to an insolvent pensioner, and instead to give the board the discretion to decide whether to do so or not; to provide for the transfer of special pensioner categories - these are people who are already receiving a pension from Transnet, for example the black widows pension fund; and to transfer this liability from Transnet to this Transnet Second Defined Benefit Fund, with the approval of the trustees, Transnet and the Minister.
During our committee public hearings some issues were raised and I'd like to refer to them. As I said, although the key provision of the Bill was meant to be an outcome of the negotiated settlement between Transnet management and the trade unions, it did emerge at the public hearings on the Bill that at least one of the Transnet unions, Utatu - United Transport and Allied Trade Union - and the SA Airways union, that is the Aviation Union of Southern Africa, felt that people who became employed by an alternative employer should, as defined in the Bill and after its implementation, be allowed to join the Transnet Retirement Fund, and that if they were to be excluded, that this exclusion should be set out in the rules of the fund and not in the Act.
Transnet management were opposed to these proposals. The Transnet management and the unions presented their respective arguments regarding these issues in written form to the committee. Consistent with the committee's views that we cannot serve as an industrial relations forum or a bargaining chamber, we felt that it was not appropriate for us to decide on whether the new employees should belong to the Transnet Retirement Fund.
Following further negotiations between Transnet management and the trade unions on the recommendations of the committee, we were informed that the SA Transport and Allied Workers Union, Satawu, and the SA Railways and Harbours Workers Union, Sarhru - who represent the majority of workers, agreed that new employees should not be included in the Transnet Retirement Fund, and that this exclusion should be set out in the Act and not just in the rules of the fund.
Utatu and AUSA still held to their views but decided that they would not pursue the matter further with us. They wanted us to record their views in our report to Parliament, and this is what we are doing here today.
The committee processed the Bill accordingly. However, some members of the committee felt that it was not necessary that the exclusion of new employees be set out in the Bill. We thus suggested that whether the provision to exclude new employees from the Transnet retirement fund was in the Bill or not would ultimately not affect decisions by the unions to take industrial actions on the matter. So, not too much should be made of the practical effects of the differences between management and some of the unions on this matter.
Several members of the public who responded to our request for comments on the Bill raised concerns about the Transnet Second Defined Benefit Pension Fund. These concerns cannot be addressed with the processing of this particular Bill. They essentially revolve around some of the following issues: that since 2003 members of the Transnet Second Defined Benefit Pension Fund have been receiving increases of 2% per annum; and that there are pensioners who receive less than the amount granted to those receiving state old-age pensions, and also that there are potential pensioners or dependent pensioners who, for a variety of reasons, including the system of migrant labour and wide-scale illiteracy in the past, may not have been aware that they are entitled to certain benefits. Transnet has offered to assist these people if they should be approached. Obviously, the committee empathises with the above concerns.
In a briefing on Transnet's annual report to the portfolio committee on 10 October, the chief executive officer, Ms Maria Ramos, said that Transnet was also concerned about the issues raised above and had presented a proposal to the trustees of the fund in this regard. With the money that will come into the Transnet Second Defined Benefit Pension Fund - what a long name - and with the recent sale of the V&A Waterfront, the prospect of resolving these matters are much greater.
The committee also raised the matter during the First Reading debate on the Bill and welcomes the Minister's favourable response as he again responded today. Secondly, I would like to comment on the circumstances in which we had to process the Bill. The committee has given notice that it will not again fast-track a Bill of this nature, particularly in the difficult end of the year period. We had very limited time to finalise this Bill.
The committee would also like to express its unanimous frustration at the fact that we do not have the necessary resources to assist us to do our work efficiently and effectively. I believe that it is a severe indictment on all of us - the presiding officers, the Whippery, the chairpersons of committees, the management of Parliament and ourselves that, 12 years into our democracy and with everyone proclaiming that committees are the backbone of Parliament, we do not have the necessary skilled and technically competent people dedicated to each committee - people who are there to assist us when we review annual reports or budgets or deal with legislation such as this.
It is nonsense that committee chairpersons must spend hours writing reports - be it on study tour reports, oversight visits, public hearings or annual reports. It is also ridiculous that members are required to ensure that each comma, "may or shall" is correctly used to reflect the committees' wishes.
Allow me, in passing, just with envy, to report to you that when we visited the Brazilian parliament last year, we found that they had 200 - and I want to repeat - they had at least 200 lawyers to assist members with, amongst others, research, report and speech writing. And I think we can take a tip from them. In conclusion, may I express my appreciation to all those who participated in the processing of this Bill; the unions and Transnet; and all those who took time to write to us, particularly regarding the Transnet Second Defined Benefit Fund. You have our support and our well wishes.
A particular word of thanks goes to Carla Prentice from Transnet, to Ursula Fikelepe and Denzel Matjila at DPE, to Fazile and Ouma and Gideon Winn - the state law advisers, Martin Stephens from the DA for his contribution to the work of the subcommittee... [Interjections.] ... I thought we'd get your support. I also want to thank our ANC researcher, Desmari Carolus. These people were prepared to meet at short notice, to work long hours and oftentimes had to work late at night at home.
Last but not least, allow me to thank my colleagues and comrades in the committee and our chairperson, Yunus Carrim - I hope you're paying attention. Yunus Carrim is a perfectionist, a terribly hard task master but one who at least leads by example.
The committee unanimously recommends that the House passes this Bill. With the few seconds remaining to me, may I, on behalf of this House, congratulate my wife on her birthday today. [Laughter.] [Applause.]
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms C-S Botha): Congratulations to your wife, hon member!