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22 September, 2008
ICEM Sub-Saharan Africa trade union affiliate, the Mine Workers’ Union of Namibia (MUN), has reached out to the Geneva-based Secretariat, congratulating ICEM on the decision to designate the Contract and Agency Labour (CAL) issue as the central focus for the 7 October Global Day for Decent Work, Decent Life.
“This is quite meaningful to us,” said ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda, “because it was MUN who was forefront last year, in their own country, to bring about enactment of a law that bans agency labour and places safeguards so that companies cannot outsource work typically done by full-time workers.”
Although the new law has yet to be implemented, practical application is expected to happen soon of Namibia’s Labour Bill 2007. Although Article 128 of the new law does grant employment agencies the right to “match” job seekers with potential employers, it stipulates that “no person may, for reward, employ any person with a view to making a person available to a third party to perform for the third party.”
The 2007 Namibian experience is included in the forthcoming “ICEM Guide on Contract and Agency Labour.” The MUN and the National Union of Namibian Workers (NUNW) teamed to win passage of the law before the National Assembly. It was signed into law late in 2007 by President Hifikepunye Pohamba.
In the congratulatory note to the ICEM, MUN General Secretary Joseph Hengari called it a “logical step to adopt the issue of Contract and Agency Labour as the ICEM’s main theme for the international trade union movement’s World Day for Decent Work, on 7 October 2008. In addition, although this has been part of our organising strategy, we will once again broaden our focus on the issue of precarious workers.
“Subsequently, we will use 7 October 2008 as the global campaign Day of Action for Decent Work … (and) we appreciate (that) new ICEM research/campaigning tools will provide encouraging examples and also offer background information on CAL, as well as strategy suggestions.”