The National Union of Metalworkers of SA (Numsa) on Thursday welcomed Tito Mboweni's appointment as chairman of Nampak.

Numsa said it hoped the former SA Reserve Bank governor would have an opportunity to see the "brutality of his conservative and neo-liberal policies he advanced at the Reserve Bank, as reflected amongst the workers at Nampak".

The union said in a statement that Mboweni's appointment should be about "cleansing himself by transformation and better conditions of employment for workers at Nampak".

It said Nampak's executive was dominated by whites and reflected the white apartheid executives.

"Mboweni's fabled intellectual status and ideological orientation earned him admiration amongst the workers given the progressive labour legislations he introduced as first minister of labour."

'Get in line with unions'

That status and admiration should guide him by pushing transformation, as opposed to being a political hock for white capital to accumulate and expand their profits interests, the union said.

"As Numsa, we hope that Mboweni will accord trade union formations -particularly Numsa - a comradely opportunity for robust and cordial engagements on the pressing and key demands that should pre-occupy his agenda."

The union argued that the agenda had to be in sync with numerous National Economic Development and Labour Council commitments of saving jobs and the creation of decent work.

Board vote 'unanimous'

In a statement on Wednesday, Nampak announced that its non-executive chairman Trevor Evans had decided to step down as chairman and director of the company.

"At a meeting on February 3, 2010, the board unanimously resolved to appoint Mr Tito Mboweni, the former governor of the South African Reserve Bank, as chairman of Nampak with effect from June 1, 2010," it said.

Evans would step down as chairman on May 31, 2010.