15 Mar 2018

Parliament has approved the Industrial Court budget for 2018/19 financial year amounting to P45.1 million  which was tabled by Minister of Employment, Labour and Productivity, Mr Tshenolo Mabeo on March 14.

The budget proposal comprised of P42.1 million  recurrent estimates as well as P3million development expenditure.

Mr Mabeo said the recurrent budget decreased by P988 130 from 2017/18 financial year budget, while development budget also decreased by P5.5 million  from the previous year’s allocation. 

He explained that the development budget will be used for the Local Area Network project, court recording, cabling for Maun Circuit Court, establishment of a semi-permanent industrial court in Kanye, and the first phase of the introduction of the Court Case Record Management System (CRMS). 

The minister informed Parliament that the Industrial Court registered a total of 1 164 new cases in 2017 which was a decline of 793 cases compared to the previous year. 

He attributed the decline to reduced court registration in areas of Ghanzi, Letlhakane, and Selebi Phikwe as a result of inadequate transport and manpower. 

He said most cases were registered in Gaborone followed by Francistown, Maun, and Selebi Phikwe respectively. 

He added that 2 262 cases were completed in 2017, while 1 778 were still pending. He explained that 608 cases from the 1 778 pending cases were more than 24 months old and therefore deemed to be backlog. 

The minister said there are plans to introduce electronic Case Records Management Systems (CRMS) in the coming financial year to increase efficiency of cases resolution by the Industrial Court.

“This is a labour intensive project that is expected to run in two phases with its completion projected to be in the financial year 2019/2020. The estimated cost of the project ranges between P10 million to P13 million at current prices,” he said.

The budget proposal was approved by Parliament on Wednesday after receiving support from MPs. Nata-Gweta MP, Mr Polson Majaga expressed concern that the Industrial Court was slow in its handling of cases.

The legislator called for more courts to be built in other centres around the country to enable workers ease of access when they have labour disputes with their employers.    

Selebi Phikwe East MP, Mr Nonofo Molefhi said the town should have a permanent industrial court because it has registered many cases in the past, while Palapye MP, Mr Moiseraele Goya said the court should become more efficient in carrying out its duties. ENDS