"The NEF has unfortunately decided that it wants to brand Namibia in the eyes of its own people and the world with the mark of a reckless country hostile to business and investors regardless of the facts," Minister Naruseb claimed.

Last Week, NEF President Vekuii Rukoro said the new law, which provides for 20 working days' leave plus five compassionate leave days, would cause productivity losses of 1,6 million working days a year.

Namibia has a workforce of about 400 000.

The NEF and a major labour-hire company, Africa Personnel Services (APS), lodged an application with the High Court earlier this month to challenge the labour-hire ban.

"Government will defend the case vigorously," Naruseb told at a press briefing in Windhoek yesterday.

"We do not share the view of the NEF that abolishing labour hire would result in higher unemployment.

It might bring about some temporary disruptions in commercial arrangements and in the employment of the former labour-hire employees.

"Our Ministry will manage the process and we will give adequate notice of the effective implementation of that section in the new law in order to provide an orderly transition for affected employers and employees," the Minister stated.

The additional leave days would not lead to lower productivity or slow down economic growth, according to Naruseb.

"The Ministry strongly disagrees with the NEF's archaic notion.

International experience has shown that enhanced employment conditions and increased social protection are motivating factors that do result in greater productivity."

Naruseb said further that Cabinet had approved his Ministry's proposal to establish a national productivity centre "in order to address the national goal of enhanced productivity in a comprehensive manner."

Government already granted ten compassionate leave days and many private companies also granted more than five compassionate leave days a year, Naruseb responded to the NEF criticism.

"We seriously doubt whether the NEF is of the view that workers should not go to funerals of their close relatives or attend to the dying.

We believe they want these workers to take unpaid leave to travel far for family funerals ...

just imagine the impact on employee morale and hence on productivity if the time taken to attend family funerals was deducted from the meagre pay cheques of many workers."

Naruseb recounted at length the various steps and consultations undertaken by his Ministry to draft the new Labour Act, which was gazetted on December 31 2007.

"I invite the NEF to reconsider its position through the prism of good faith and social dialogue and solve its complaints in an orderly and non-confrontational manner," the Minister said.

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