Govt warns exploitative employers

Govt warns exploitative employers
By Fridah Zinyama
Monday March 31, 2008 [04:00]

LABOUR ministry permanent secretary Ngosa Chisupa has said the ministry has had difficulties in carrying out its work due to the current weak labour laws in the country. In an interview, Chisupa said the Ministry of Labour will increase the penalties associated with flouting labour laws to ensure that employees are protected in the country.

"All those employers who flout labour laws by not keeping proper records, paying minimum wages, are going to be dealt with once the penalties are stiffened," he said.

Chisupa said the revised labour Act that was being tabled in Parliament would deal with all the pertinent issues like minimum wages.

"What people do not understand is that minimum wages vary according to different entry levels in a company," he said.

Chisupa said once the revised labour Act was adopted, some statutory instruments would be issued to deal with matters such as seasonal workers, temporary workers and casualisation.

"We will stiffen penalties against casualisation and casual employment to ensure that employers abide by the law," he said.

Chisupa said it was sad that most companies now preferred to employ workers on a casual basis to avoid paying them their retirement packages.

He also said Ministry of Labour would soon put in place a statutory instrument for the mining sector that is meant to protect workers.

There have been several complaints of increased casualisation in the mining sector as most of the mines use contractors to do most of their work.

Chisupa said the Ministry of Labour had so far met with the Mineworkers Union (MUZ) and Zambia Congress of Trade Union (ZCTU) to discuss how best workers in the constructionindustry could be protected.

"The statutory instrument that is being worked on will ensure that non-unionised workers get not less than 80 per cent of whatever the unionised workers will get," he said. "This will help to reduce on the many incidences of minimum wages that have been on the increase in the mining sector."

Chisupa said the ministry was working on linking the wages in the mining sector to social security.

"All the stakeholders would be meeting in April to discuss the way forward on coming up with a statutory instrument that will ensure that workers from contracted companies get 80 per cent of the salary that unionised workers get," said Chisupa.