Africa-Press – Lesotho. SIX trade unions say they will down tools next Friday to press Labour Minister Moshe Leoma to gazette a new minimum wage for factory workers. The strike will be a follow-up to one they held two weeks ago in the Thetsane Industrial Area where three workers were shot and injured by the riot police.
The unions say they will petition Prime Minister Moeketsi Majoro and Leoma to address their grievances. Speaking at a press conference in Maseru on Tuesday, , who is the Secretary General of the National Clothing Textile and Allied Workers Union (NACTWU), said they will not back off until their grievances are addressed.
“The government has also failed to increase the salaries for the 2021/2022 financial year,” Mokhele said.
“These trade unions have agreed to work together on issues that affected them,” he said, adding that this initiative would benefit their members because their word would be stronger when united.
He said it was their legitimate expectation that the gazette for the 2021/2022 financial year would be issued on April 1 this year but that did not happen.
“It has failed to take place, at least for now,” he said. Mokhele said the government has dismally failed to issue minimum wage increase for this financial year. And this has hit the employees hard.
Mokhele said they are also not happy with the inefficiency at the Labour Court, the Labour Appeal Court and the Directorate of Dispute Prevention and Resolution (DDPR).
“The wages board completed its business on the 24th March 2020 and we want the gazette released,” Mokhele said.
He said workers are not happy after they were not given an increase in 2020 and 2021. Mokhele accused the Labour Minister of not approving the gazette.
He said they are unhappy that successive ministers had failed to pass the Labour Code Bill since 2006. He said they want the minister to fast-track the Bill as it will be beneficial to workers, employers and the entire country.
Again, they are gravely concerned that the workers were not included when the Covid-19 regulations were made. Leoma told thepost that he is “aware of the grievances tabled by the unions”.
“This happens at a time I have already laid my hands on the grievances,” Leoma said.
“I have engaged my legal team to advise me on how to deal with the grievances through legal channels,” he said.
He said he had also learnt that the unions were not happy with the failure by the government to issue a social security scheme and the review of the Labour Code.
The trade unions that were part of the press conference are the NACTWU, the United Textile Employees (UNITE) Lentsoe la Sechaba Trade Union, Lesotho Workers Association (LEWA), Independent Democratic Union of Lesotho (IDUL), Construction, Mining, Quarrying and Allied Workers’ Union (CMQ) and Lesotho Wholesale, Catering and Allied Workers Union.
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