Second workers union registers at BMC

PATRICIA MAGANU
Staff Writer | Friday April 30, 2010 00:00

The Botswana Meat Industry Workers Union (BMIWU) seems to have irretrievably split. The split of the unions has resulted in problems that are said to have haunted the union since 2004 involving mismanagement of funds. There followed a series of issues that the union members could not resolve successfully.

Speaking to Mmegi, the secretary general of the new union, the Meat Processors Staff Workers Union (MPSWU), Joshua Gabriel, a former deputy general secretary of the BMIWU says that the new MPSWU is officially a union as the Ministry of Trade and Industry issued them with a certificate of registration from the Registrar of Trade Unions and Employers Organisations on March 3, this year. Gabriel said that their relationship with the BMIWU could not be saved and that is why they decided to form their own union.

He said that at the moment he has about 197 members dominated by the Francistown section. Now since they have the certificate of registration they would like to go back to the Minister of Agriculture to discuss pending issues that have affected BMC workers since 1997.

'We are now a legally registered trade union and we want to hear what the employer has to say about issues pertaining to BMC workers salaries.

BMC workers are not getting paid according to the Hay pay system like other para-statal organisations,' he said. 

'We have an appointment to meet with the minister and BMC management on May 3 to talk about the BMC paying system and the back pays that the BMC has been owing employees since 1997,' he added. 

Gabriel further says that since receiving the certificate of registration from the relevant ministry, they have since notified the BMC management that they are a new union representing BMC employees.

Gabriel also told Mmegi that the new union is waiting to register about 297 new members from Lobatse because at the moment its membership is dominated by Francistown workers.

He said that as far as he knows they have satisfied the requirements by the commission to be legally recognised as a union. Though he was not available for comment BMC chief, Dr. Motshudi Raborokgwe, wrote a letter saying that he appreciates the fact that they have informed them of their existence.

'However, it is worth pointing out that the fact that the BMC already has a recognition agreement with the Botswana Meat Industry Workers Union in terms of the Trade Disputes Act,' he stated.

'We do not have a problem recognising the union provided you follow and adhere to the requirements of the trade disputes act and the trade unions and employers organisations act in particular section 48 (1) of the trade unions and employers act which stipulates that: If a trade union represents at least one third of the employees of an employer, that trade union may apply for recognition under section 32 of the Trade Disputes Act,' the letter continued. The correspondence goes on to advise the new union to show that they represent at least one third of the BMC employees before BMC recognises and you as the employee representatives.

'As employees cannot belong to two unions at the same time, current members of the Botswana Meat Industry Workers Union would have to indicate that they have resigned from that union and joined yours,' he wrote.

Deputy general secretary for BMIWU, Karabo Kenalemang, says that they have only heard of the new union from the grapevine.

'We saw it in the media but we have never really known whether it was formed. We have not seen it perform any duties,' he said. He added that at BMIWU it is business as usual.

Kenalemang says that they also have no idea that the new union is to meet the Minister of Agriculture. 'We do not know if they have an appointment with the minister. If they do BMIWU has nothing to do with it,' he added.