Security, retail companies leading labour violations
Spira Tlhankane | Tuesday February 20, 2024 06:00
A month ago on social media, there was a trending post regarding an incident involving a security guard who reportedly locked up his workplace due to unpaid salaries highlighting the challenges faced by workers in this sector.
Minister of Labour and Home Affairs, Anna Mokgethi, disclosed in a parliamentary session recently that security companies lead the list of sectors with labour violations, followed by retail, services, hotel and catering, entertainment, and construction. "Amongst labour matters are late payments, unfair dismissal and failure by the employer to implement/respect rulings from mediation.
This is observed through labour inspections and labour dispute processes," she revealed. To address labour violations, Mokgethi emphasised that her ministry conducts labour inspections across all sectors to ensure compliance with labour laws. Penalties, as prescribed in the Employment Act, are imposed on companies found in violation.
She revealed that 11 security companies, including Lushow Security Company, Ultimate Security, and Flexi Security, had their licences revoked due to contraventions of labour laws. Others, the minister mentioned, include Jungle in the Green Security Company, Western Security Company, Sengenta Holdings Security, Blackbone Security, Wounded Buffalo Security Guard Service, Pertrosa Security Service, Majuxen Security Service, and Skyview Security. Mokgethi highlighted the collaborative efforts with other stakeholders, employing joint labour inspections as a holistic approach to tackling labour issues.
This approach, she said, has led to the non-renewal, rejection, or cancellation of permits for companies found violating the law. Mokgethi noted that this strategy compels employers to comply with the law to obtain the necessary licences or permits for their operations. The minister was responding to a query from Gaborone Central legislator Tumisang Healy, who sought information on the top five sectors with the highest incidence of labour violations.
Mokgethi also noted that while labour disputes decreased during the COVID years (2020–2021), the number of recorded disputes increased last year, with 9,672 disputes recorded. Out of these disputes, 32 cases were referred to the Botswana Police Service.