Unions fail to submit returns

EPHRAIM KEORENG
Staff Writer | Friday December 17, 2010 00:00

 

A government document on the state of trade unions shows that big names in the labour movement like the Botswana Federation of Trade Unions, Botswana Federation of Public Sector Unions, Botswana Teachers' Union (BTU) and the Botswana Government Workers' Union have not submitted in the five-year period, whilst others like Botswana Hotel Travel and Tourism Workers 'Union, TAWU and Botswana Housing Corporation Staff Union have submitted twice in the five-year period.

Meanwhile, unions like National Amalgamated Local and Central Government and Parastatal Workers' Union and UBASSU have submitted thrice in the period between 2006 and 2010.  Though his union is said to be failing to submit the reports, BTU secretary general, Ibo Kenosi, has said it is untrue that they have not been submitting. Interviewed yesterday, Kenosi said he suspects the registrar's office in the ministry of labour and home affairs has its records mixed up.

'At our congress this year April, I was elected secretary general and afterwards I submitted returns, to the registrar's office. She received them and gave me a certificate of returns which is only issued to a union in good standing.

'So, I was shocked when this year they wrote us a letter saying we have not been submitting returns. I have the reports. I suspect people at that office (the registrar's) are failing in their work,' he said.

The BTU official said they have submitted every year up to 2009, adding that they are in the process of submitting their 2009/2010 financial reports, which is currently being audited.

'By December 31, 2010, we will have submitted it,' he said.

He said that the other problem that they experience as unions in Botswana is that most of the auditing companies seem to be based in Cape Town. 'I don't know if they are freelancing or what. You would go to their office thinking they are based in Botswana and the next thing when you want the report back, they tell you it's being audited in Cape Town.

'As we speak, the 2008 audit report arrived two weeks ago from Cape Town. It took a year and a half to come out and they actually gave it out after we put a lot of pressure on them,' he said.

Kenosi said after receiving the letter from the registrar's office, the union has decided to send more copies of the audit reports to the ministry, 'because like I think, something happened in their records,' he said.  Meanwhile,  BOFEPUSU general secretary, Andrew Motsamai, has said he is shocked that his federation, which government has said 'will not deal with as a union, they are now saying we should submit returns.  The federation is relatively new and will have its first congress next year March, where an audited financial report will be released. It's only after that, that we will be able to submit,' he said.

However, a source at a government enclave has revealed that unions once complained that auditing was proving too expensive for them. And when government volunteered to audit them, the unions later turned around and accused government of interfering in their affairs, hence forcing government to pull back. 

Government pulled back in line with ILO conventions that deal with Freedom of Association and the Right to Organise and Insolvency, which pertain to ILO Conventions 87, 98, 151 and 173. 

In the Trade Unions and Employers Organisations Act, trade unions found some provisions to be too restrictive to freedoms of association and collective bargaining. Among other things, the act required trade unions to seek the labour minister's consent in writing to affiliate to anybody or organisations outside the country. The same applied to soliciting and or accepting funds from outside the borders.

Now the legislation is that 'trade unions will only be required to declare the funds received from outside Botswana,' reads the article in part.  But the unions are no longer required to seek the minister's consent concerning funds received from outside Botswana.

This, according to a government source, is why the unions feel no obligation to submit returns.

Another article of the amended law states that 'no funds of a trade union, federation of trade unions or employers' organisations shall be expended otherwise than as provided by their constitutions'.  Initially, the act provided in a detailed 'manner, how the funds of trade unions, federations and employers organisations shall be spent, but they felt it was undue interference.

'Now that it is not stipulated how they should spend funds, financial mismanagement is rife in a lot of the unions, hence they are not ready to submit the returns,' the source said.

The ministry is said to have verified with some employers who confirmed that employees were contributing subscriptions to the unions. The employees are still wondering why the unions are not submitting returns. 

Unions have already been summoned to appear for a hearing next year January to explain why they have not been submitting returns.

'Some, especially that have not been submitting for more than 10 years, are likely to be struck off,' said the source.  By the time of going for press, the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs spokesperson, Tidimalo Palai, had not responded to Mmegi questions.  Efforts to reach the registrar of trade unions, Lesego Pule, also drew a blank.