A brief review of the Labour Inspectorate in Mozambique

Abstract

SIMIÄO SIMBINE is Regional Coordinator for the Trade Union Solidarity Centre of Finland, SASK A brief review of the Labour Inspectorate in Mozambique Since 2004 the Mozambique Labour Inspectorate has been engaged in lively,even 'spectacular', work to monitorcompliance with labour standards at a workplace level The Democratic liberation Mozambique history war. of Organisations trade traces The unions so its called roots in Mozambique traces its roots tothe liberation war. The socalled Mass Democratic Organisations (ODM, in Portuguese) were created by Mozambique Liberation Front (Frelimo), as its wings to support the anti-colonial war, namely the Mozambican Youth Organization (OJM) and Mozambican Women Organisation (OMM). It wasagainst this background that the productions councils (the name usedbefore the establishment of the first national trade union centre) were created tomobilise workers inthe fighting for independence. At that time, the approach wasthe correct oneas ithas significantly contributed tothe independence of the country and, inoneway oranother, itpaved the way for the national unity which wasa reality inthe recent years after independence. Apparently the ODMs andparticularly worker's organisations lost their focus after independence (25June, 1975). Thereason might probably bethe fact that the common enemy (colonialism) hadbeen defeated, meaning that there wasnothing tofight against. Theissue should not beonly seenfrom the ODMs sidebecause the ruling party (deliberately ornot) did not define the way in which itwould relate itself with other stakeholders. Inthe process, workers felt that their rights were not duly kept andthis isoneof the reasons behind the split inOTM (Mozambican Workers' Organisation) which resulted inthe creation of the second national centre, the Confederation ofFree and Independent Trade Unions (CONSUMO). Actually, inpractical terms, itisvery difficult to seedifferences between the two national centres asthey have almost the same approaches tolabour issues. Nevertheless, itis positive toseethat they work together ina couple ofissues, but todistinguish them in terms of their political orientation andlevel of performance itisnot aneasy task. Currently some positive developments are taking place intrade union issues in Mozambique. Themain difficult istoseethem, asthe trade unions arekind of'media shy' institutions andalsotend tooperate away from the whole society. Duetothis approach many people saythat trade unions aredoing nothing, which isnot true atall. TheLabour Inspectorate hasbeen operating in Mozambique for long time. However, like many other labour related issues, the Labour Inspectorate only gained visibility (not necessarily popularity) after 2004elections. These elections marked, for the first time, the smooth political power transition whereas the former President Joaquim Chissano voluntarily stepped down and'opened doors' tohislong time political mate andsenior member of Frelimo, Armando Guebuza, who convincingly won the elections. Soon after, the country noticed considerable differences between Chissano andGuebuza governance styles. The former hadbeen labelled asa diplomatic leader duetohisskills to'swim inhot waters' atthe international level andsolving internal issues onthe basis of laissez faire principles. Meanwhile, Guebuza is generally seenasa tough leader andmore focused ininternal issues. Inthis context, inall sectors oflife, significant differences were experienced andthe reactions were diverse: Some were optimist feeling that Guebuza would 'put the house inorder' andsoon recalled him asa follower of the late andcharismatic President Samora Machel (who died in1986). Others were not comfortable with the developments asthey considered that Guebuza wasjust trying to'show off' by destroying the political andsocial machinery built by his predecessor. Asmentioned before, itistrue that allsectors felt some changes, but infact some were more mediatised than others. Alive example isthe labour sector. Thereason isnot exactly that so many things were happening there, but above ofall, two aspects were rising: 1)the charismatic andpragmatic leadership of the new Labour Minister, Ms.Maria Helena Taipo. 2) South African Transport Workers Union (Satawu) Members Inspection of foreign companies, however, has been a more complex matter than regulation of local companies the mediatised way of taking some decisions, that often put the Minister inthe spotlight (which wasgenerally praised by public opinion). Mozambique hasratified alleight core ILO conventions. However inview ofrestrictions on trade union rights, discrimination, child labour and forced labour, further measures areneeded tocomply with the commitments. Inpractice, the pivotal areaofthe Labour Minister hasbeen the Labour Inspectorate. Itsmain task isto check legal aspects inlabour relations. Another task of the Labour Inspectorate istomonitor the fulfilment ofrights andduties ofemployers and employees. Areport from the Labour Minister indicates that in2008, 325illegal foreign workers have been suspended in...