The Motor Industry Staff Association (Misa), the biggest union in the retail motor industry with more than 75,000 members, has called on the department of trade, industry and competition (DTIC) to urgently establish a worker-centred End-of-Life Vehicle (ELV) regulatory framework that protects existing jobs and creates thousands more.An ELV framework is a legal system that ensures vehicles at the end of their lifespan are properly depolluted, dismantled and recycled. Without such a framework, South Africa risks losing access to its largest export market, the association said. South Africa’s automotive manufacturing sector, which contributes nearly 5% to GDP and supports about 500,000 formal jobs across the value chain, is dominated by the seven original equipment manufacturers (OEMs): Toyota Motors South Africa, Nissan, Isuzu, Ford, VW South Africa, BMW SA and Mercedes-Benz. Misa chief executive for operations Martlé Keyter said the organisation presented its position at a DTIC workshop attended by “key automotive stakeholders and a delegation from Japan’s ministry of economy, trade and industry, in Sandton”. “Roughly three out of every four vehicles exported from South Africa are destined for Europe, where new vehicle circularity rules are being finalised by the EU and will require recycled materials, circular design, and full lifecycle responsibility from manufacturers,” Keyter said. “Failure to comply could lock South African vehicles out of Europe, threatening export revenue of R291bn and hundreds of thousands of jobs. Misa will not accept a framework that treats workers as an afterthought. Every dismantler, recycler, and technician must have safe working conditions, recognised qualifications, and career pathways. This is about protecting livelihoods today and building sustainable jobs for tomorrow,” Keyter said. Misa said the automotive industry’s future depended on urgent alignment with global circular economy rules. “For Misa, the message is clear: the ELV framework must protect both the environment and the workers who keep the industry alive. “The union has requested Japanese expertise on worker safety, training systems and the viability of small dismantlers, drawing on Japan’s automobile recycling law, which sustains thousands of small enterprises and achieves recovery rates of close to 99%.” Department of trade, industry and competition minister Parks Tau’s spokesperson, Kaamil Alli, said: “The DTIC has been working on an ELV strategy under the broader circular economy policy work. The team working on the project held consultations with stakeholders to assess the situation on the ground. It is unfortunate that Misa has decided to publicly discuss this issue.”Alli said the department would continue to engage with stakeholders through the channels agreed upon and “will not partake in debates in public at this stage”. “We will continue to work with our partners, including Misa, as we look to develop an ELV strategy that makes sense for all parties and in line with South Africa’s industrial development goals. “We are fully aware of the contribution that the autos sector makes to the economy and are also working with industry as the sector transitions into the new energy vehicle era.“Earlier this year vehicle manufacturer Chery South Africa acquired the Nissan manufacturing plant in Rosslyn, Pretoria. Rosslyn is one of two Nissan manufacturing plants on the continent, the other being in Egypt. Chery’s acquisition of the Rosslyn factory made it the third Chinese brand to manufacture vehicles in South Africa after BAIC opened a plant in Gqeberha in 2018 and Foton began building the Tunland G7 in 2025. In 2019, Nissan announced a R3bn investment to upgrade the facility for the production of the new Navara, which began in 2021. The plant had been underused after production of the popular NP200 half-tonne bakkie ceased in March 2024 after 16 years, with the Navara the only vehicle still built at the factory. Local production of the Navara was scheduled to end in May and would be imported in the future. In May 2025 Nissan announced plans to close seven production plants over the next two years as part of a global recovery plan and speculation had been rife that Rosslyn would be among the casualties. Business Day