Adequate protection for textile workers
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//2: me to weigh in on the unMust treatment that is being meted on textile workers for exercising their right to protest for a fair wage. This comes in the background of an increasing cost-of-living and Mob related costs yet the wages are sticky upwards. I also marvel at the fact that some of the protesting textile workers have been sent home, allegedly for refusing to sign forms that they shall not engage in any strike actions.
WORKERS’ RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS
It is my strong belief that workers have rights guided by the labour relations and the (mployment $ct. $lso (swatini is ascends to the International /abour Organisation conventions and treaties and we are signatory to the decent work agenda and the fair trade agreements. $lso we have domestic labour relations laws that are up to standard if enforced we should not have to contend with such gross human right violations in the work place. Workers have the right to protest and negotiate for a higher wage, furthermore, they have a right to organise and unionise. It is very concerning when workers become forced to de-unionise through unscrupulous methods without impunity, this is something the labour department needs to investigate and ensure compliance. We cannot allow such inhumane treatment on the lower echelons of the working class.
PROTECTION FOR ALL WORKERS
There is a stark need for the laws of the country to be all embracing and protect the working class adequately. One notes how deficient our protection mechanisms are when it comes to protecting unskilled labour in our economy. One looks at parallels where if the formal working class protests they are never subMected to such degrading and inhumane treatment. The worst they get is no-work-no-pay. This is purely because the protection mechanisms reveal Must how un-equal our society really is. If one can afford the right legal minds and they have the means for a protracted litigation battle with the employer then they can strike for weeks on end and even months and get away with it. In an egalitarian community this is an anomaly that is not allowed to exist. $ccess to Mustice and fair treatment should not be determined by one¶s wealth and social standing, which defies the basic principle of equality of access. The fact that such unfair treatment is allowed to take effect with impunity on the perpetrating capitalist, is really concerning. We need the duty bearer government to take swift action in ensuring that workers¶ rights are protected and this will also improve the productive capabilities of the employees.
BENEFITS OF ADEQUATE PROTECTION
The whole textile industry in the kingdom is built on the backbone of unskilled labour, which we seem to be neglecting to protect as a country. The industry contributes between three and six per cent of total value addition in manufacturing in (swatini, this is according to data from the World %ank. $lso, the textile industry is the second largest employer after the sugar industry, also a maMority of the workers in the industry are women, 81 . Therefore, protection is also a gender goal in this industry. We need to protect our workers as an impetus for gender equality, which makes for efficient production systems through the elimination of adverse selection in the labour force. This is to say both men and women be granted equal opportunities to participate in the labour force and not systematically segregated because of their gender. Furthermore, adequate protection ensures that workers feel protected enough to be more productive and innovative, ultimately increasing the productivity of the entire workforce. Furthermore, adequate protection for our workers is congruent to protection for the income stream that the country generates through the textile industry. This is a very vital source of revenue for the economy and a vital source of employment that needs to be protected. This is an industry that hinges on the need for adequate supply of labour, without which it crumbles to the ground.
A PARADIGM SHIFT
It is imperative that we shift our institutions from the utilitarian approach to Mustice and shift to a more inclusive and Must society. We need to cultivate the 5awlsian propositions to a model society. We need to engender a society that will protect all in society and not Must those that are born fortunate or have been dealt a better hand by life. We need a Mustice system premised on universal access to basic liberties for all and social and economic inequalities need to be addressed in a manner that benefits the disadvantaged. We need to structure our productive systems along these principles. We also need to structure our institutions in a manner that they work for the disadvantaged in society, because that is what Mustice entails. 5egardless of what contributes the most to society¶s welfare we need to ensure that all individuals have access to basic liberties.