GOVERNMENT HINDI TEACHERS’ UNION: Workers Rights Bill
The Workers Rights Bill is set to replace the Employment Rights Act 2008 and it represents, in my opinion, a huge leap forward in terms of protecting the rights of employees and bringing Mauritius up to par with international working conditions and standards.
Laudable initiatives in the Workers Rights Bill include:
– The expansion of the definition of violence at work under Part 13 of the Bill to replace the very limited definition under Section 54 of the Employment Rights Act 2008 and include bullying, assault, verbal abuse, inter alia. Furthermore, the employer can no longer take a step back in such issues since under Section 109(3) of the Workers Rights Bill, the employer can be held vicariously liable for violence at work including sexual harassment where the employer knew or should have known but failed to take steps to prevent or stop the violence.
– The implementation of a Portable Retirement Gratuity Fund (PGRF) under Part 12 of the Bill which ensures that the employee who changes work is not penalised in the calculated length of service when he/she moves from one work to another. Under the old law, workers often felt stuck and hesitant to change to a more fulfilling job because it would affect their length of service. But the PRGF brings a much needed relief allowing more flexibility for workers to pursue more and grow in their careers.
– Extending maternity leaves to mothers who have adopted a child under the age of 12 months and giving breaks for mothers who are nursing their unweaned child are a good start to recognise that working mothers play a big part in the work force and have to balance caring for their new-born and/or newly adopted child and their jobs.
The Workers Rights Bill represents a step in the right direction but is far from being perfect. The aspects on which more work needs to be done includes the following:
– Disciplinary committees: The situation remains unchanged in that the employers still hold the reins. Employers state the charges, conduct the hearing and mete out sanctions. This system denies the employee who is facing charges the opportunity to have a fair hearing, a right which is guaranteed under Section 10 of the Constitution.
– Flexitime provisions: The provisions under Section 16 of the Workers Rights Bill need to be more clearly defined. The derogation which allows the employer to refuse a request for flexitime for ‘reasonable business grounds’ need to be made more specific. This provision is too vague. Anything and everything can amount to a ‘reasonable business ground’ which makes it easy for the employer to deny requests for flexitime. The importance of flexitime cannot be overstated. If successfully implemented, it impacts worker’s performance, economic growth, overall employee well-being and traffic jams.
In criticising the finer details of the Bill which can be worked on, union representatives and the representatives of Business Mauritius should be careful not to use the flaws in the Bill to create a mediatic storm for show and advance their own agenda through the press. There is still work to be done but the Workers Rights Bill is not, as being claimed by certain stakeholders, a ship doomed to sink. In fact, with collaborative work targeting the weaker areas, the Workers Rights Bill is most certainly, a ship that will sail.
Suttyhudeo Tengur
Négociateur GHTU
Posted by Minority Voice
on Aug 1 2019. Filed under Economie.
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