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7 September, 2009
Ugandan trade unions have brought to light de-humanising work conditions imposed by foreign investors in some of the country’s workplaces. In a meeting with President Yoweri Museveni in Entebbe on 1 September, leaders of the Central Organisation of Free Trade Unions (COFTU) said abuse of workers and mistreatment is increasingly on the rise in private businesses controlled by outside investors.
Although COFTU did not name employers, the worst of the abusive practices were by small businesses. Dr Sam Lyomoki, COTFU’s General Secretary and a member of the Uganda Parliament, presented a petition to the President that outlined general shortcomings in pay and work conditions, as well as failure by some employers to remit income tax and social security deductions to the government.
But the biggest shock came when labour leaders told of denigrating practices imposed by bosses on workers. Specific incidents were cited. One involved a small-business owner who forced an employee to mop an office floor with her tongue. Another boss in a food and detergent manufacturing plant locked a female worker in a toilet in retaliation for her using the toilet before a scheduled break.
Reports said Museveni was visibly shaken upon hearing such accounts. He ordered the Labour Ministry to immediately investigate the abuses. He also told the trade union federation that he would support establishment of labour institutes within the country that would monitor employer misconduct, as well as safeguard workers’ health and safety.