Labour Ministry to inspect workplaces to check conditions of services – Minister

Ministry of Labour, Sports and Manpower Development says it plans to engage in an impromptu countrywide spot check of working conditions of employees in different companies and organizations across the country.

The Minister responsible Henry Mussa made the revelation to the Malawi News Agency (MANA) in an interview on Tuesday that the exercise will include inspecting occupation safety and health compliance of workers.

This follows media reports that some workers are exposed to hazardous work environments and are also paid low wages.

“The Labour Ministry is aware of the situation, and very soon we will be conducting spot check exercises across the country to inspect if the companies and employers are adhering to labour laws and rights of Malawi.”

The Minister said this will include looking at whether there is the provision of protective gears to employees working in hazardous environments.

“Those companies, industries and organizations not abiding to this, will be flushed out from the labour sector,” he said.

According to Mussa, the exercise is expected to take place soon after parliament passes the National budget for the 2017/2018 financial year.

“We are optimistic that we will be allocated with enough finances to undertake this inspection. Besides, we are relying on various stakeholders including private sectors to mobilize the resources to systematically execute this task,” he said.

During the commemorations of International Labour Day on Monday, President of Malawi Congress of Trade Unions (MCTU) Luther Mambala cited the minimum wage as one vital aspect that needs to be revised.

he said the current minimum wage is pegged at K690 per day which is very low in relation to people’s living standards.

Labour Legislation, Industrial Relations System of workers, Workers Compensation Act, occupation safety and health welfare of employees are some of the conditions stipulated in labour laws of Malawi.