Another black Christmas for workers

KESITEGILE GOBOTSWANG* | Thursday December 13, 2007 00:00

In firms and safari lodges across the country, the workers are subjected to the most humiliating treatment one could ever imagine. The local media is littered with cases of abuse, insults and sometimes beatings that the workers have to endure in the hands of former Rhodesian Selous Scouts and Apartheid South African fascists of all sorts.  Such abuse includes instances where workers are watched even in private places like toilets. In some factories, employees work under lock and key. This puts their lives in danger in case of emergency fire outbreaks. It is also not uncommon to hear of female workers being searched and harassed by male security guards in some companies. In this shining democracy, workers work long hours without overtime payment. 

When it comes to payment, Batswana workers are paid slave wages. With the ever escalating consumer prices arising from the pula devaluation, high petrol cost and so on. the slave wages hardly meet the cost of transport, food and the worst accommodation available. The biggest beneficiaries of the plight of workers are the Cash Loans (Bo Machonisa) and Metshelo. The workers in this country are dangerously indebted to these two industries.

One of the biggest challenges that workers face during this time of the year is the high expectations from their rural folks and the bad treatment they get from the so-called employers. Many workers from the private sector in particular are never certain about when they will get their next payments. In some instances, when they are ultimately paid often they get a fraction of their monthly wage. In the worse of cases, the employers disappear without paying them.  Every year December records the highest cases of employers who run away with money leaving workers in limbo.

In this shining democracy, workers are not protected. They are easily fired especially when they are due for gratuities. Recently it was reported in the media that a worker was fired after she had raised an issue of poor working conditions at a meeting addressed by the Minister of Labour. This is another clear indication that workers who demand their rights such as living wages, overtime allowances, leave days or gratuities do that at the risk of losing jobs. Just this week, I got a call from a worker from one of the companies in Gaborone telling me, close to tears that they were being forced to take leave days during the Christmas holidays even though the company will be closed.

Workers from key public institutions like Botswana Railways, Botswana Telecommunications, and Air Botswana face an uncertain future since they are being threatened with retrenchments in preparation for the controversial privatisation exercise. Many will join a growing army of the unemployed.

What concerns some of us is the inability of the authorities to bring this suffering to finality. Abusive employers continue to arrogantly boast about the protection they get from the powers that be. Workers have been told to report to the Vice President if they wished - with the full knowledge that they were untouchable. Part of the reason is that some government Ministers or their associates are shareholders in companies that don't respect the rights of workers. Another reason is that some of the abusive employers are financial sponsors of the ruling party.

It is sad that in this country many private sector workers are treated worse than prisoners. Once again the majority of them face another black Christmas while their employers pocket huge profits ready to enjoy the festive season.

* Dr. Gobotswang, who is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Botswana and Deputy Leader of the BCP is writing in his personal capacity.