As the country’s steel and engineering sectors gear up for wage negotiations later this year, the National Union of Metalworkers of South Africa is also getting ready.

The union is holding a National Bargaining Conference, set to continue till Tuesday, at the Birchwood Conference Centre in Johannesburg.

The conference is designed to help prepare labour for the wage negotiations.

According to Phakamile Hlubi, the acting national spokesperson for Numsa, the conference will include more than 200 delegates from Numsa, representing all nine provinces, as well as those who work directly with employers in the sector and will be involved in the negotiation talks.

“There are a lot of challenges facing this sector. There’s been massive job losses, particularly as a result of the influence from Chinese companies where the government allows these companies to bring in cheap skill imports,” Hlubi said.

“It’s killed businesses and created a huge crisis.”

However, while plans for negotiations are under way, employers have also been trying to leave the bargaining council. The bargaining council is the primary way that workers are able to negotiate with employers for better working conditions.

Conference participants will discuss all of the challenges facing the sector in detail and begin to map a way forward.

“We are looking at the challenges and trying to better understand what we are facing in order to find concrete solutions that will tackle these challenges,” Hlubi said.

“The conference is a forum for members to fully engage in these issues.”

Conference participants will hear from major stakeholders in addition to receiving a presentation from department of trade and industry representatives.

The second day of the conference will focus specifically on strategy and on crafting a list of demands ahead of negotiations.

While there is no specific date set for the start of negotiations, talks are expected to begin in July.