The South African Reduction Workers' Association (SARWA) was a

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

representing officials involved in processing mining ores in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

. The union was in existence in the early years of the 20th-century, but it nearly collapsed following the

Rand Rebellion The Rand Rebellion ( af, Rand-rebellie; also known as the 1922 strike) was an armed uprising of white miners in the Witwatersrand region of South Africa, in March 1922. Jimmy Green, a prominent politician in the Labour Party, was one of ...

. By 1926, it had only 900 members, all of whom were white, but it began growing again under the leadership of Archie Moore. It was a founding affiliate of the

South African Trades Union Congress The South African Trades Union Congress (TUC) was a national trade union federation in South Africa. The council was established in 1924, as the South African Association of Employees' Organisations. It was founded at a special congress, held afte ...

, and then to its successor, the

South African Trades and Labour Council The South African Trades and Labour Council (SAT&LC) was a national trade union federation in South Africa. History The federation was founded in 1930, when the South African Trades Union Council merged with the Cape Federation of Labour Unions. ...

. However, its acceptance of

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

led it to split away in 1951, forming part of the new

South African Federation of Trade Unions The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) is a trade union federation in South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the s ...

, which later joined the all-white South African Confederation of Labour (SACOL). By 1962, it had 3,300 members. The union renamed itself as the South African Technical Officials' Association in 1973. In 1980, it decided to begin admitting "coloured" workers, which led SACOL to expel it.{{cite book , last1=Miller , first1=Shirley , title=Trade Unions in South Africa 1970-1980: a directory and statistics , date=1982 , publisher=Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit , location=Cape Town , isbn=0799204692 In 1996, it merged with the Administrative and Technical Officials' Association, to form the Administrative, Technical and Electronic Association of South Africa.

References

Mining trade unions Trade unions disestablished in 1996 Trade unions in South Africa