BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – Government, through the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, has reviewed wages and other conditions of services for 16 Wages Councils.
“The Ministry of Labour and Social Security would like to notify stakeholders, social partners and the general public on the publication of Regulations of Wages Orders for 2024 in terms of Section 6(1) of the Wages Act, No. 16 of 1964,” said part of a statement issued by Minister of Labour and Social Security Phila Buthelezi.
According to the statement, the published Regulations of Wages Orders contain newly reviewed wages and other basic minimum terms and conditions of service of sector-specific workers as mentioned in each of the Legal Notices. The reviewed conditions of employment and minimum wages are a product of negotiations between employers and workers in the respective sectors as facilitated through the various Wages Councils that the Ministry appoints in terms of the Wages Act.
There are currently eighteen (18) Wages Councils that the Ministry appointed in terms of Section 6 of the Wages Act which says the Minister may establish a Wages Council to perform, about the employees specified in the order and their employers, the functions specified in the Wages Act in any case in which he is satisfied that no adequate machinery exists for the effective regulation of the wages or conditions of employment of those employees, or that existing machinery is likely to cease to exist or be adequate for that purpose, and that it is expedient that such a Council be established. Under this provision, tripartite Wages Councils to facilitate negotiations of wages and other basic minimum terms and conditions of service in the following Sectors were appointed by the Ministry:
1. MICRO-MONEY LENDERS INDUSTRY
2. PRE-SCHOOLS AND DAY-CARE CENTRES INDUSTRY
3. AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRY
4. HOTEL, ACCOMMODATION, CATERING AND FAST FOODS TRADES
5. SECURITY SERVICES INDUSTRY
6. SUPPORT EMPLOYEES IN SCHOOLS AND EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS
7. MANUFACTURE AND SALE OF HANDICRAFT INDUSTRY
8. MINING AND QUARRYING INDUSTRY
9. DOMESTIC EMPLOYEES
10. TEXTILE AND APPAREL INDUSTRY
11. BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION
12. MEDIA INDUSTRY
13. RETAIL, HAIRDRESSING, WHOLESALE AND DISTRIBUTIVE TRADES
14. FORESTRY AND FOREST INDUSTRY
15. MOTOR ENGINEERING TRADES
16. FUNERAL UNDERTAKERS
17. MANUFACTURING AND PROCESSING INDUSTRY
18. ROAD TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY
Minister Buthelezi said 16 of the 18 Wages Councils have successfully finalised their negotiations. Out of the 16 Wages Councils, the minister said two Wages Councils –the Building and Construction Industry Wages Council and the Manufacturing and Processing Industry Wages Council had to re-sit after receipt of objections and comments following the publication of the Notice of Intention to Publish this year’s Regulations of Wages Orders on September 25, 2024, in terms of Section 11 of the Wages Act. According to the minister, the 30-day Notice of Intention period to file comments and objections elapsed on October 24, 2024.
The minister said mention needed to be made that comments and objections were received from two Stakeholders (Security Companies) on November 27 and 29, 2024 respectively pertaining to the Security Industry Wages Regulation which could not be taken into account by the respective Wages Council for the Security Industry since the comments and objections were submitted way out of the statutory 30-day period as mentioned above.
The remaining two Councils that have not finalised their negotiations were the Council for the Forestry and Forest Industry and the Media Industry Council, for which negotiations were ongoing, according to the minister. “The average increment across the 16 Sectors for this year is 8.24%, reflecting a decrease of 1.13% compared to last year’s average increment of 9.37%. The percentage range of negotiated increases is between 5% (minimum) and 20% (maximum),” he said.
He said last year’s highest increment was also 20 percent. “The lowest negotiated increment is five percent for the Hotel, Accommodation, Catering and Fast Foods Trades and the highest is 20 percent for Funeral Undertakers Industry. Negotiated settlements considered several factors such as the inflation rate, cost/standard of living, and projected economic factors that might have either positive or negative impact shortly upon the various Sectors or Industries, amongst other factors,” he said.
Special note, according to Buthelezi, was made by the Ministry regarding the delays by the various Wages Councils to finalise their negotiations, hence the delayed publication of the new Regulations of Wages Orders. This year the delays were occasioned by the fact that the Wages Councils did not start on time to sit for negotiations due to internal financial challenges to pay the Councils their 2023 allowances. “Most Councils started their negotiations in August 2024. The Ministry would like to express its sincere regrets for the inconvenience caused to all our Stakeholders in this regard, including the Wages Council members,” he mentioned.
