Rutendo Mazhindu
ZimNow Reporter
The International Labour Organisation in partnership with the Southern African Development Community will be has scheduled Strategic Compliance Planning workshops for September and October 2024 in Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe.
These workshops will be a significant step towards equipping national and local stakeholders with the necessary tools and knowledge to improve compliance in the construction sector.
The experiences and insights gained from the three pilots workshops will be shared with other SADC member states in November 2024 and beyond.
The construction project aims to tackle the root causes of poor working conditions, low compliance and labour productivity issues in the sector.
A series of focus group discussions with partners across the three pilot countries to identify the challenges and opportunities of moving the sector towards decent work for all.
Discussions were held with SMEs, workers, and Business Development Service providers. A total of 76 participants took part in the in-person FGDs, including 23% BDS providers, 33% SMEs, and 43% workers.
Problems identified included limited number of labour inspections for smaller projects as well as lack of knowledge about labour rights and regulatory requirements among workers and contractors.
The SMEs consistently expressed the need for improved productivity and better market access. They said high costs of quality personal protective equipment often leads to compromises that affect worker safety. Another factor highlighted is inconsistent access to markets resulting in irregular workflows that promote short-term and informal employment, lack of representation, and non-compliance with collective bargaining agreements.
The cash flow challenges also makes it harder to consistently pay for social security and workers' compensation.
Female workers specifically highlight the pervasive issue of Gender-Based Violence and Harassment within the sector, including exploitative demands made by some managers in exchange for continued employment.
The Decent Work in Construction project through the ILO’s Strategic Compliance Planning approach aims to address these challenges through improving the frontline delivery of labour inspection tools.
The Strategic Compliance Planning approach promotes collaboration among labour inspectorates and other stakeholders including other Ministries.
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