Should the labour hire industry in Namibia be regulated or not?

Abstract

Abstract provided by author

The National Assembly is constitutionally obliged "to remain vigilant and ensuring that the scourge of apartheid, tribalism and colonialism do not again manifest themselves in any form in a free and independent Namibia and to protect and assist disadvantaged citizens of Namibia who have historically been victims of these pathologies".[1] Given the racial practices and policies which gave meaning and structure to the concept of "labour hire" during the pre-independence era, the National Assembly was clearly justified in questioning and scrutinising its recognition and regulation in the Labour Bill. When the National Assembly decided to ban labour hire in its entirety was it case of prescribing H1N1[2] for a mere headache? During the parliamentary discussion that led to section 128 being included in the Labour Act, the distinction between the contract labour system and the current labour hire system were not adequately appreciated.[3]The Supreme Court's ruling on the matter has given the stakeholders - government, labour movement, business community and civil society - a golden opportunity to start drafting of appropriate regulations to deal with the offensive and exploitative aspects of the practices of labour hire. Even though labour hire can be exploitative, regulating the industry as opposed to a complete ban would bring the practice in line with the Constitution. While exploitation of workers recruited by labour hire companies occurs world wide and also in Namibia, the reality is that people at least manage to find employment.[4] If we ban labour hire are we not adding to the population of unemployed masses?