By: Zilungile Mkhize

The South African Federation of Trade Unions (SAFTU) wishes the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee could have lowered interest rates.

The SARB left the rate unchanged, at 8.25 % and the prime lending rate at 11.75 %.

Saftu’s spokesperson, Trevor Shaku, says a decrease would have provided much relief to working-class households who are currently drowning in debt.

He adds declines in private household employment are caused by, among others, the increased debt servicing costs for households, forcing them to cut on expenditure in other areas.

[advanced_iframe src=”https://streaming.fabrik.fm/fabrik/echocast/player/rewind-single/player.html?id=6d2fc469-1aa3-455c-8e71-36fc65de6156&web_url=https://echocast.fabrik.fm/L3BL10WVY1zNV&podcast_id=4413f7d3-9566-4883-a556-a6002b55c124″ width=”100%” height=”200″]