20 May 2014

The Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs is in the process of amending the Trade Dispute Act to expedite the resolution of disputes and delivery of justice, Minister Edwin Batshu said on May 20.

Officiating at the first-ever joint labour inspectors and mediators workshop in Tlokweng, Mr Batshu said it was disappointing that it took too long to amend the law.

Mr Batshu said after the amendment, the number of cases referred to for arbitration or the Industrial Court would go down because mediators would be empowered to preside over disputes.

He said one of the causes of delay in amending the law was the Botswana Federation of Public service Union (BOFEPUSU) judgement which was in favour of trade unions.

He explained that although his ministry was advised to wait for the judgement, there was nothing new in it that could stop the amendment process. Therefore, a draft memorandum would soon be presented before the executive.

He also explained that the ministry was in the process of establishing a dispute resolution unit to help deal with labour disputes. He noted that employers subjected their workers to ill-treatment and abuse, even to the extent of denying them the right to join unions.

Labour malpractices occurred, despite the fact that labour laws sought to harmonise the employer-employee relations. He also said many achievements were realised in dispute resolution and labour inspection during the 2013/14 financial year, with 9 630 labour inspections carried out between April 2013 and March 2014 plus a compliance level of 95 per cent.

These included joint operations with other stakeholders. He attributed the compliance level to campaigns through public education and stakeholder workshops. Mr Batshu said as part of the strategy to disseminate information on labour laws and various aspects of employment rights, collaboration was made with the news media, notably RB2, Gabz FM and Duma FM resulting in interactive discussions with the public on air.

Ten thousand five hundred and four trade disputes were lodged for mediation during 2013/14 and 4 983 of them were settled while 411 were withdrawn, 114 referred to Botswana Police Service, 172 going for arbitration and 1 960 reaching the Industrial Court.

He said 2 029 parties in these cases did not turn up for mediation while 369 were default awards and 466 were carried forward for 2014/15. The total amount received on behalf of employees in settlement of their disputes exceeded P1 million All district labour offices, except Francistown, were able to mediate disputes within the 30-day statutory period.

He said the execution of the labour inspectorate and dispute resolution functions guaranteed harmonious relations between employers and employees and the protection of the rights of both.

Minister Batshu warned the labour inspectors and mediators against the dangers of accepting bribes from clients. He spoke of instances where a labour officer received a bribe in the form of airtime with the promise of depending unscrupulous employers.

However, the Secretary General of the Botswana Federation of Trade Unions, Mr Gadzani Mhotsha, complained at the same workshop that labour inspections in Gaborone were slow, this enabling employers to destroy evidence. Ends