Private sector employees’ conditions worsening- BOTAWU
Goitsemodimo Kaelo | Tuesday June 3, 2025 10:09
The union’s general-secretary, Maikgantsho Ramontsho said in an interview that for a very long time, workers in the private sector, especially those in tourism have been left in the lurch as the current labour laws are failing to protect them. Ramontsho said working conditions in the private sector continue to deteriorate due to unfavourable laws that do not entirely protect the rights of workers. He also said the situation is worsened by some employers who do not want their employees to unionise, therefore, leaving them vulnerable to abuse. As such, he said the circumstances are deplorable and leave the workers at the mercy of the employer. “It is a serious concern, especially for those in the tourism sector. Labour laws in Botswana are not friendly. It is not easy to recruit workers in the private sector to join unions, unlike in the public service. There is no proper space to find them as a group because some work on shifts. Added to that, some workers are threatened and dismissed when they want to join the union, hence the low numbers that have unionised,” said Ramontsho. Ramontsho said they expect a lot of changes in the workers’ rights following the recent change of government.
“We expected this government to quickly come up with pro-workers’ laws. But we are disappointed that although some of the partners in the coalition, like the Botswana National Front, which always spoke about national democratic revolution, seem to be relaxed now. We thought they were going to revolutionise laws, come up with laws that are pro-workers,” he said. “We know that they say it is early, but there should be something on the ground already. Backbenchers should be showing that they are pro-workers by bringing motions that want to revolutionise the labour laws in the country. Like President (Duma Boko) rightfully said, our MPs are derailed by bringing questions that don’t add value to national discourse,” he added. Ramontsho expressed hope to see immediate changes during the winter Parliament session. He said one of the sections of the law that needs immediate attention is the one on the recognition threshold for a trade union in a workplace.
“The current law says a trade union must be recognised if it represents more than one-third of the employees of the employer. If you take sectors such as tourism, farming and retail, they have many workers, but most of them have not unionised because of this one-third threshold. You register an employee today, tomorrow they have left the union because they were either threatened or dismissed,” he said. Furthermore, Ramontsho said it should be made a crime to threaten employees from joining unions. “This should be regarded as a crime because you are denying someone the right to freedom of association, which is enshrined in the Constitution of the country. Freedom of association should not be negotiated. However, as it currently is, workers are afraid to join the unions because they fear being victimised,” he explained. Additionally, he said the government is an accomplice in the abuse of workers’ rights in the country.
He said the government has allowed exploitation of workers for a very long time by also employing workers on short-term contracts or working on an acting basis for a long time. He said this has, in a way, set a bad precedent. He said it is shocking that the hospitality industry is still dominated by immigrants who provide cheap labour. He said this is despite the government sending many people to school to study hospitality courses.