The Sweet Workers' Union (SWU) was a small but long-lived union representing confectionery workers 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 ...

. In 1925, a Women Workers' Union was established by F. Klenerman. It affiliated to 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 ...

(SATUC), but as a

general union A general union is a trade union (called ''labor union'' in American English) which represents workers from all industries and companies, rather than just one organisation or a particular sector, as in a craft union or industrial union. A gene ...

, it was prohibited from registering with the government. As it only had membership in two industries, in 1926 it split into the Waitresses' Union and the Sweet Makers' Union. It had about 200 members, which represented 75% of the sweet makers in

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Demo ...

. It remained affiliated when the SATUC merged into 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. ...

. In the late 1930s, the union was led by

Dulcie Hartwell Dulcie Marie Hartwell (18 October 1915 – 30 October 2012) was a South Africa trade union leader. Born in Johannesburg, Hartwell's mother died when Dulcie was three years old. The family then struggled for money, and Hartwell had to leave sc ...

, and in 1937, E. J. Burford established a parallel African Sweet Workers' Union to represent black labourers in the industry. In 1939, the

Garment Workers' Union of South Africa The Garment Workers' Union of South Africa (GWU) was a trade union representing workers in the clothing industry in South Africa. The union was founded in 1909, as the Witwatersrand Tailors' Association, and its initial membership was focused on ...

helped the union expand nationwide, and by 1947, it had grown to 1,843 members. It was associated with the left wing of the movement, and in 1951, its secretary, H. Le Roux, was banned by the government. Unlike most unions in South Africa, the union continued accepting white, "coloured" and Asian members. Its membership had declined to only 298 in 1979, but in 1980, it affiliated to the

Trade Union Council of South Africa The Trade Union Council of South Africa (TUCSA) was a national trade union federation in South Africa. History The council was founded in October 1954 by 61 unions which split from the South African Trades and Labour Council. They decided that on ...

and began accepting black members, its membership growing to 1,396 by the end of the year. In 1997, it was a founding affiliate of the

Federation of Unions of South Africa The Federation of Unions of South Africa (FEDUSA) is the second largest national trade union center in South Africa. History The federation was founded on 1 April 1997, when the Federation of South African Labour Unions merged with the Feder ...

. It was dissolved in 2005.{{cite web , title=CANCELLATION OF REGISTRATION OF TRADE UNIONS RESULTING FROM THE 2002 LRA AMENDMENTS , url=https://www.labourguide.co.za/employer-organisations/43-general/general/1513-cancelled-and-de-registered-unions , website=South African Labour Guide , access-date=22 April 2021

References

Food processing trade unions Trade unions established in 1926 Trade unions disestablished in 2005 Trade unions in South Africa