30 May 2020

Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Employment, Labour Productivity and Skills Development, Mr Kabelo Ebineng says they have received 1 229 cases at their offices since the start and lifting of COVID-19 extreme social distancing period.

Speaking during a press conference on May 29, Mr Ebineng said so far, they had managed to address 1 036 cases, while 18 were still pending.

He added that 175 cases were for other government departments.

Most of the cases, he said were labour related cases, where some employers and employees could not resolve their differences.

He further stressed that no employer was allowed to fire employees during the uncertain times of the COVID-19 outbreak, adding that labour laws should be observed at all times.

He said the company could only be allowed to lay off employees provided it had proved that it could no longer operate.

However, such a decision, he said should be only taken after deliberations with relevant stakeholders.

Mr Ebineng further noted that some employers had failed to pay their workers even after Botswana Unified Revenue Services (BURS) assisted them through the wage subsidy.

He highlighted that an audit would be done to check if all companies had used the money requested for its intended purpose.

He pointed out that the Industrial Court would start operating soon.

Mr Ebineng said that all companies and government departments should ensure that they have Safety Health and Environment (SHE) officers or representatives, who would ensure that COVID-19 protocols were adhered to.

Furthermore, Mr Ebineng said brigades would open in three phases, starting on June 2, with students who were on their final year, then upper level students on June 9 while the last group would resume classes on June 16. ENDS