‘Working hours should be reduced for women workers’

By Lamin Jahateh

The Gambia National Trade Union Congress has appealed for the reduction of working hours for women workers to enable them to return home to do their domestic chores.

“On behalf of the women workers, we appeal to the Honourable Minister of Trade, Regional Integration and Employment to consider reducing the hours of work per day to facilitate them to return home on time for their domestic chores,” the secretary general of the National Trade Union Congress said.

In January 2013, President Jammeh effected a change in the official working days and hours of The Gambia.

In that vein, since 1 February 2013, official working days in the country have reduced from five to four, Monday through Thursday, and working hours increased from eight to ten hours; that is from 8am to 6pm. 

Hitherto, official working days in the country are from Monday to Friday, and hours from 8am to 4pm.

The Gambia is now one of the very few countries in the world with a mandatory four-day working week. 

The country is now shut down for a whole day while most of the rest of the world continues doing business and financial markets remain active. 

The reason advanced by the Office of the President for this sudden move was that Friday will be a rest day, a day Muslims can use to worship Allah.  Also, people will have more time to do their agricultural work as part of the President Jammeh’s call for Gambians to “eat what you grow and grow what you eat”.

Workers need to be motivated to do their best, says Gambia Trade and Employment Minister

By Lamin Jahateh

Employers must always understand that workers, being an integral part of their production processes, need motivation to do their best in a production setup, the Minister of Trade, Regional Integration and Employment has said.

Hon. Kebba Touray argues that motivation exists when workers feel recognised, respected, and are given ample opportunity to develop their careers.

“Recognition, respect, and opportunities for career development are largely traceable to social dialogue, an embodiment of negotiation, consultation, information-sharing, and decent work,” the Trade Minister said in a statement read on his behalf by Mass Axi Gaye, Minister of Fisheries and Water Resources, on 1 May during the Workers’ Day commemoration held at the July 22^nd Square in Banjul.   

The Trade Minister said employers should always make themselves available to workers for consultation, negotiation, and convergent and conclusive discussion of mutually beneficial matters, including in-house or on-the-job training. 

Also, he said employers should ensure that workers are commensurately rewarded for their efforts and always assured of a healthy and safe work environment.

For the secretary general of Gambia National Trade Union Congress, Ebrima Garba Cham, a large chunk of the workforce in the country is working under poor working conditions. 

Workers are being exploited by unscrupulous employers such as unlawful terminations, unfair redundancies, unpaid accumulated annual leave, unremitted social security contributions, and harassments.

He calls on the government to pay particular attention to workers in both the formal and informal sectors.

Aggrieved workers should negotiate before going to court, says Gambia Trade Minister

Trade Minister Kebba Touray

By Lamin Jahateh

Workers who may be aggrieved on account of bad working conditions, paltry remuneration and other genuine concerns should do an exhaustive negotiation and dialogue before going to court, the Minister of Trade, Regional Integration and Employment has said.

Hon. Kebba Touray said any worker who feels hurt, aggrieved by deplorable working conditions and exploitative remuneration or any employment related issued should realize that social dialogue is a primary option for redress rather than taking industrial action, going to court.  Social dialogue is a tripartite discussion of government representative, the employer and the aggrieved employee.

“Industrial action should be last resort,” the Trade Minister said in a statement read on his behalf by Mass Axi Gaye, Minister of Fisheries and Water Resources, on Wednesday during the Workers’ Day commemoration held at the July 22^nd Square in Banjul. 

May 1^st is commemorated worldwide as Workers’ Day also known as May Day.

The Trade Minister’s comment came at a time when the industrial tribunals in the country are inundated with cases of unfair dismissal and other employment related matters.  Almost on daily basis, newspapers in the country publish court cases on employment matters going on at the court.

However, the Trade Minister said social dialogue, involving the relevant parties - the government, employers and workers - substantially aids amicable resolutions of industrial disputes if it is underpinned by good faith, work ethics, and professionalism. 

On the contrary, he said industrial action, going to court, tends to complicate and aggravate matters, resulting in high costs, particularly in terms of output and income losses.

GIEPA given additional mandate, tasked to help MSMEs to access finance

The Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency has been given additional task to provide services to the micro, small and medium-sized enterprises to get access to finance, Kebba Touray, Minister of Trade, Industry, Regional Integration and Employment, has said. 

Trade Minister Kebba Touray

The Agency, whose main tasks include promoting and facilitating investment, business and export development in the country, is also mandated to provide small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with business development services to sustain their growth and development.

This has followed the dissolution of the Indigenous Business Advisory Services (IBAS), a government institution established to provide aid and support, as well as serve as an impetus, to indigenous small and medium-sized enterprises in the country. 

This revelation was made on Tuesday during the question-and-answer session of the second meeting of the National Assembly in the 2012 Legislative Year.

The trade minister’s statement was prompted by a question posed by the National Assembly Member for Janjanbureh, Foday Jibani Manka, who asked the minister to “inform this Assembly the current service of this institution (IBAS) and its effectiveness, to be able to strengthen and promote a dynamic enterprise culture providing necessary ingredients which will accelerate socio-economic growth for Gambians, particularly for unemployed youths”.