Africa-Press – Cape verde. The Minister of State for Family, Inclusion and Social Development revealed today that the Government intends to merge the General Directorate of Labor and the General Labor Inspectorate, resulting in the creation of a regulatory authority for the sector. This measure aims to promote greater efficiency in labor administration, also guaranteeing greater independence from political powers to resolve labor disputes impartially and effectively.
Commitment made at the social consultation meeting held today.
“It is a reform that will allow greater efficiency in labor administration, greater authority of labor administration over companies and workers, above all greater independence in relation to political powers, because the government is also an employer and sometimes we have labor conflicts in that the government cannot simultaneously be the referee or the player, therefore this reform aims to make this distance clear and allow this even greater institutional robustness for the administration of work”, explained the government official to the press.
Regarding social security, the minister highlighted the commitment to gender equality in access to pensions, aiming to eliminate existing disparities between men and women in the INPS regime.
“What we discuss here is that we will agree between the parties, the workers, the government and the unions, the best possible way to resolve this disparity, which could be changing the INPS regime with the public administration regime, which allows for reform in the same age, or find an intermediate solution for this matter, but a decision has not yet been made”, he added.
The introduction of early retirements in the social security regime was also discussed, as well as the implementation of a benefit for families at the beginning of the school year, with the aim of assisting with educational expenses.
Regarding the next steps, the minister stressed that these are matters that are still terms of reference and that the Government will then take the bill to be discussed and debated at the Social Coordination Council.
“It is important to bring together the Inspectorate and the General Directorate of Labor and create a framework for greater efficiency and effectiveness in labor administration. This will be done simultaneously with the new Code of Administrative Offenses, which will allow greater action by the authority with companies, with employers and also review everything that is authorizations, everything that are certifications, the skills that companies and workers need, they will also be under this entity, which will give greater strength and much more efficiency to labor administration”, he reaffirmed.
In turn, the president of the Cape Verdean Confederation of Free Trade Unions (CCSL), José Manuel Vaz, considered the reforms that the government intends to make in relation to the two instruments presented to be very positive, such as the labor relations regulatory authority.
Vaz emphasized the importance of an independent and autonomous authority to guarantee the comfort of workers, but also warned of the need for laws not to become mere formalities.
“We just warn the government, in this regard, that it is necessary that this law does not become a dead letter”, he warned.
Furthermore, the president of the CCSL demonstrated support for the INPS reform proposals, recognizing the potential substantial gains for workers, such as better benefits and greater social inclusion.
However, he showed reservations regarding increasing the retirement age for women from 60 to 65, emphasizing the importance of respecting acquired rights.
“I mean, they are clues, because they are still terms of reference, data collection, so that this will later be translated into a draft”, explained Vaz about the proposals under discussion, highlighting the need to involve unions and other representative organizations in the process policy development, ensuring that workers’ voices are heard.
Regarding the possibility of lowering the retirement age for men, making it equal to that of women, Vaz mentioned the need for a comprehensive policy that also considers the reuse of older workers, preventing them from falling into precarious situations after leaving the job market. .
“We are going to work with the class now, to survey the situation, to see what women specifically want, what the working class wants, and the relationship, therefore, to the proposals that INPS presented”, concluded Vaz.
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