The controversy around labour broking continued to occupy centre stage at the public briefing organised by the Department of Labour in Port Elizabeth on Tuesday.
The session was attended by dozens of stakeholders from business, organised labour, civil society bodies and government institutions and addressed by Thembinkosi Mkalipi, the Chief Director: Labour Market Policy in the department.
The briefings are intended to explain proposals made by the department to the Labour Relations Act and the Basic Conditions of Employment Act in the labour amendment Bills at National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac).
In his presentation, Mkalipi said the debate largely centres on demands by organised labour that labour brokers should be banned while business feels they should be regulated.
“Ours as civil servants in a democracy like ours is to implement what the manifesto of the ruling party says on the matter – namely that in order to avoid exploitation of workers and ensure decent work, laws should be introduced to regulate contract work, subcontracting and out-sourcing and address the problem of labour broking and prohibit certain abusive practices,” he said.
Mkalipi said the Bills responded to abuses in the labour market in that labour brokers roll over contracts of employees, thereby making workers permanent temporary employees – that workers employed by labour brokers earn less than their counterparts employed by clients doing the same job – workers employed by labour brokers not being able to take up their dismissal cases with the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) and workers employed by labour brokers often not having access to social benefits such as retirement funds.
As expected, labour unions dug in their heels and said they would settle for nothing short of the “complete ban’’ of labour brokers.
Mkalipi reminded Cosatu that it was part of the tripartite Alliance decision on the manifesto in 2009.
Also in attendance was Les Kettledas, the Deputy Director-General, Labour Market Policy in the department as well as some members of Parliament.
The team will proceed to Durban tomorrow and round up their presentations in Rustenburg in the North West on May 10.
Vuyokazi Mbanjwa
Cell: 082 889 3936
Labour broking debate dominates Department of Labour public briefing in Port Elizabeth
