Mozambique trade union wants labour tribunals, not mediation centres

Maputo – Mozambique’s largest trade union federation, the OTM, on Tuesday insisted on the need for the government to set up the long-awaited labour tribunals.

Recently, the stress in official documents has been on extra-judicial solutions to labour disputes through arbitration and mediation. But the OTM insists that dispute mediation centres can never be any substitute for labour tribunals.OTM chairperson Carlos Mucareia, speaking at a Maputo ceremony launching a week of activities marking the 32nd anniversary of the OTM, said that the mediation centres were set up to reduce the pressure on the court system.In the absence of labour tribunals, labour disputes ended up in the ordinary courts, and a large backlog developed.Mediation centres, Mucareia pointed out, only work for cases that can be solved through consensus.Where consensus was not possible, the matter had to go before a tribunal for a definitive ruling, he insisted.Mucareia said that the OTM has been training its leading figures in the techniques required for negotiating the minimum wage by sectors.Up until 2008, there were just two statutory minimum wages – one for industry and services, and one for agriculture.But now minimum wages are set for nine sectors of activity.The new form of wage negotiation has led this year to better results than in the past, but none of the new minimum wages came anywhere near meeting the basic requirements of an average five member family.The OTM calculates that a basic minimum of goods and services for such a family costs 6 000 meticais (about US$250) a month.But the highest of the current minimum wages is 2 140 meticais a month.Mucareia also inveighed against another longstanding problem for Mozambican workers – the fact that many are losing their right to social security benefits through no fault of their own.Hundreds of companies across the country are simply not channeling contributions to the National Social Security Institute (INSS).The money is deducted from workers’ wages, but not sent to the INSS.The employers are thus stealing from their workforce, but none of them have been hauled before the courts for these thefts.”We trade unionists have to improve our organisation, and continue to strengthen our capacity to intervene in the struggle to promote and defend the rights and interests of workers,” declared Mucareia.- Nampa-AimBut the OTM insists that dispute mediation centres can never be any substitute for labour tribunals.OTM chairperson Carlos Mucareia, speaking at a Maputo ceremony launching a week of activities marking the 32nd anniversary of the OTM, said that the mediation centres were set up to reduce the pressure on the court system.In the absence of labour tribunals, labour disputes ended up in the ordinary courts, and a large backlog developed.Mediation centres, Mucareia pointed out, only work for cases that can be solved through consensus.Where consensus was not possible, the matter had to go before a tribunal for a definitive ruling, he insisted.Mucareia said that the OTM has been training its leading figures in the techniques required for negotiating the minimum wage by sectors.Up until 2008, there were just two statutory minimum wages – one for industry and services, and one for agriculture.But now minimum wages are set for nine sectors of activity.The new form of wage negotiation has led this year to better results than in the past, but none of the new minimum wages came anywhere near meeting the basic requirements of an average five member family.The OTM calculates that a basic minimum of goods and services for such a family costs 6 000 meticais (about US$250) a month.But the highest of the current minimum wages is 2 140 meticais a month.Mucareia also inveighed against another longstanding problem for Mozambican workers – the fact that many are losing their right to social security benefits through no fault of their own.Hundreds of companies across the country are simply not channeling contributions to the National Social Security Institute (INSS).The money is deducted from workers’ wages, but not sent to the INSS.The employers are thus stealing from their workforce, but none of them have been hauled before the courts for these thefts.”We trade unionists have to improve our organisation, and continue to strengthen our capacity to intervene in the struggle to promote and defend the rights and interests of workers,” declared Mucareia.- Nampa-Aim