workers
19 January 2006
The Department of Labour has vowed to settle all outstanding pensions and
compensation claims of former Lesotho migrant workers who were employed in
South Africaâs mines.
This emerged at the meeting between the Lesotho Minister of Employment and
Labour Mpeo Mahase-Moiloa and South Africaâs Labour Minister Membathisi
Mdladlana in Pretoria yesterday (Thursday).
The meeting was aimed at reviving the labour agreement the two countries
entered into in 1973, which, according to the two ministers had become
obsolete.
South Africa employs about 300 000 Lesotho nationals at any one time, most
of whom are in the mining industry.
The pledge by South Africa paves the way for a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) to be completed within a month.
A draft MoU is to be thrashed out by delegations of the two countries
tomorrow (Friday).
The MoU is expected to address areas of co-operation such as social dialogue
and dispute resolution.
âThe reason we decided to take the route of the MoU is because we want
issues related to compensation and pension claims to be addressed urgently
since we do not want to see families of these workers starving,â Minister
Mdladlana said.
Minister Mahase-Moiloa said: âWe want to ensure that Lesotho nationals in
South Africa are here legally and that employers do not take advantage of their
illegal status to exploit them.â
Collaboration is already taking place between the Commission for
Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) and the Lesotho government in
the area of dispute resolution; hence the CCMA is one of the institutions the
Lesotho Minister visited at the end of their meeting.
During the two-day visit, Minister Mahase-Moila will also visit the National
Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac), a tripartite institution for
social dialogue between labour, business and government, Compensation Fund and
the Department of Labourâs Gauteng North provincial office.
She said their visit coincided with the review of labour laws in Lesotho and
they hoped to learn from South Africa.
South Africa has already concluded similar agreements with Zimbabwe and
Mozambique.
Only a week ago, Zimbabwean Labour and Social Affairs Minister Nicholas
Goche met Minister Mdladlana at Beit Bridge to regularise the status of
Zimbabwean migrant workers employed in South Africa.
Enquiries: Page Boikanyo
Cell: 082 809 3195
Website: http://www.labour.gov.za
Issued by: Department of Labour
Date: 19 January 2006
