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COSATU submissionon the domestic workers sectoral determinatiobn reportSeptember , 2001 |
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COSATU submissionon the domestic workers sectoral determinatiobn reportSeptember , 2001 |
COSATU welcomes the Department of Labour’s Report on the Investigation into Minimum Wages and Conditions of Employment of Domestic Workers (thereafter the Report). The Report provides basis some for a systematic discussion on improvement of the living and working conditions of the domestic workers. Domestic workers are one of the most vulnerable and exploited sectors in the labour market. The majority of whom is African women, and therefore requires an effective state intervention to protect their rights. In concurrence with this observation, the Report states that domestic workers represent a vulnerable category of workers and it is an undervalued activity performed by people from disadvantaged social groups1. It further assets the majority of domestic workers are Africans followed by Coloureds, Whites and Indians. Statistics South Africa (OHS99) indicates that there were about 10. 4 million people employed people in South Africa in October 1999, of whom approximately 799 000 were employed in domestic work. COSATU have made a submission to the department outlining specific proposals to protect Domestic Workers2. COSATU and its affiliate, SADSAWU, have made a concerted effort to organise these vulnerable workers. The state should play a significant role in ensuring that domestic workers are protected. We shall therefore assess this Report in terms of its ability to integrate our key proposals.
Our submission had encapsulated the following key principles:
Supported the setting and enforcement of minimum wages for domestic workers. We indicated that this should be a living wage, informed by the social and economic needs of domestic workers and their responsibilities in providing for their families. Furthermore, we proposed that once the minimum is set, there should be graduated real increase over an agreed period. The setting of the minimum wage should transcend the existing geographic disparities and avoid a dual labour market system. However, there may be a need for transition period over which uniformity is established. Where the introduction of minimum wages impacts on the affordability of domestic work, the adjustment should be made in terms of reducing the number of hours worked. This should be linked to a comprehensive education and training strategy for domestic workers. Skills development for domestic workers should be catered within the ambit of a Cleaning SETA. The Basic Conditions of Employment Act should apply uniformly to domestic workers. In addition, the Employment Conditions Commission should regulate further issue specific to domestic workers. The establishment of state supervised pension\ provident funds for domestic workers. Extension of both the UIF and COIDA coverage to domestic workers. The establishment of state regulated agency through which domestic workers would be employed. This would play a critical role in ensuring that minimum wages and working conditions are enforced.
COSATU welcomes the release of sectoral determination for domestic workers in line with provisions of the BCEA, 1997. This determination would ensure that domestic workers are protected from exploitative relations and poor working conditions, which are still prevalent in the sector.
The report outlines the main problems and constraints encountered by the domestic workers. These constraints include, but not limited to, social isolation, lack of privacy, poor working conditions and low wages. The report assets that domestic workers are some of the lowest earners in the South African labour market, and evidence shows that they receive substantially lower earnings than other occupational groups except farm workers3. COSATU supports the following provisions as informed by the generic provisions of the BCEA:
COSATU notes that domestic workers wage increases are sporadic and generally determined by discretion of employers. In certain instances, workers do not receive any increment for a number of years. The employee-employer relationship is individualised and therefore reduces the bargaining power of workers. We welcome the state commitment to ensure that wages would be prescribed for a three-year period, encapsulating across the board wage increase of 7 % per year in the second and third year of application. However, we would prefer the scenario whereby this increment is inflation indexed.
COSATU welcomes the proposal that the minimum wages should be phased in over a short period of time. However, we believe that this should come into effect immediately after the promulgation of this determination. Employers, with genuine reasons for non-compliance, could be allowed to apply for three months extension. We further welcome that the scope of this sectoral determination apply to all employers and employees in the domestic sector in the country, including those employed by employment agencies and those who operate as independent contractors but deserve protection as workers.
COSATU welcomes a proposal to develop Code of Good Practice. The formulation of Code of Good Practice should involve consultation with trade unions. A Code of Good Practice would play a crucial role to facilitate effective labour practices in the sector. The Report has reflected that this sector has acute ignorance and transgression of labour rights.
The state should play an active monitoring role to complement an enforcement of a Code of Good Practice. This objective could be attained if workers know their rights and are protected from any form of intimidation. The Department should develop an awareness and monitoring strategy that would ensure that both employers and employees understand their legal responsibilities and rights. This process should include civil society participation, especially domestic workers unions.
COSATU, in principle, welcomes the Report’ setting of minimum wages in the sector. This approach would ensure that employers are not unilaterally allowed to set poor wages for domestic workers. The prevalence of low wages in the sector is linked with the legacy of a cheap labour system, rather than a lack of productivity. The low-wage scenario is also prevalent due to the low level of unionisation in the sector. The workers are unable to bargain collectively. The individualised nature of their work reduces mobilisation. The setting of minimum wage serves as an effective measure to ensure that workers receive a basic living wage. However, we are concerned that the proposed amounts are extremely low.
We note that the Report asserts that the setting of a minimum wage should be based on the following aspects:
The Report proposes that a minimum wage should be based on geographic differentials. It suggests the following figures R400, 00 (in rural areas), R500, 00 (in peri-urban areas) and R600, 00 (in urban areas). COSATU proposed that a minimum wage should ensure that domestic workers are able to sustain their families and provide for their material and social needs. Furthermore,SADSAWU proposed for R1 200 a month plus transport costs for skilled workers, R8 00 a month plus transport for semi-skilled workers, and R75 a day (or R9, 72 an hour) for part time workers.
We indicated that minimum wages should be comparable to those within the cleaning sector. The report seems to rely heavily on the existing low wages as a point of departure. It does not consider a feasibility of introducing a minimum wage, which could contribute to poverty alleviation. The report seems to assume that high minimum wages would necessarily lead to the reduction of employment opportunities in the sector. It therefore suggests that an alternative scenario is to maintain low wages as a condition of ensuring job security. The scenario would likely lead to the maintenance of the working poor within the sector. This would contradict the attempt to reduce poverty in the sector.
The report assets that different wage levels should be prescribed for different geographic areas with due regard to the economic and social circumstances. While this proposal may be inevitable in the short-term, however we propose it should be phased out in the long term. The department should develop a framework to phase out geographic disparities. There should be a shift from geographic wage differences towards skills based approach. We should avoid a situation whereby the most vulnerable, rural domestic workers are less protected than their urban counterpart.
A viable option is to develop a comprehensive strategy that could put emphasis on skills development and setting of a living wage. We are concerned that the Report prefers the continuation of low-wage approach, relative to an integrated skills based approach. The latter approach could facilitate a linkage between the domestic sector activities and the development needs of the country. The provision of adult basic education and training for domestic workers would be crucial aspects of skills development strategy. Furthermore, we proposed the establishment of a Cleaning SETA, the payment of skills levy by employers, paid time off for education and training. These issues are not seriously considered in the report.
These measures would require the state to invest more resources for human resource development. This would ensure that domestic workers are integrated in the mainstream economy and their contribution to the economy gets social recognition. The Report uses affordability principle to justify the setting of low wages.This is despite the fact it accepts that employers have option to reduce the total cost by decreasing the number of hours worked. COSATU argues that this approach can be used to resolve affordability problem without necessarily setting low minimum wage. It can further ensure that the setting of a minimum living wage would not lead to job losses and would provide an additional time for domestic workers to explore other additional sources of income. We have noted that there may be employers who would genuinely be unable to afford a full time domestic worker were they to pay living wages. However, we proposed that this does not mean that minimum wages should lead to job losses: the adjustment should rather be in terms of the number of hours worked. The report accepts that in the face of hourly increases, employers would have the choice of offsetting wages against hours of work, and this could lead to no or fewer job losses than the model implies.4
The Report indicates that the employers are ignoring the provisions of the BCEA, 1997. It was established during the hearings that employers misinterpret BCEA provisions, either intentionally or unintentionally, to ‘opt out’ of a formal employer\ employee relationship and to evade the legislation.5
The Report further states that factors such as the nature of the contract, hours of presence at work, employee’s place of residence and method of payment play an important role in determining the parameters of the employer\ employee relationship.
While this sectoral determination would serve to ensure that these misinterpretations are addressed, however it may not be effective. There is a need to create an effective environment that would be favourable for enforcement of this sectoral determination. COSATU is concerned that our proposals for the establishment of state-regulated labour agency for domestic workers is not considered.6 We believe that the establishment of state-regulated labour agency could provide institutional framework for monitoring and enforcement of a minimum wage and effective working conditions for workers. We further indicated that it facilitate a shift towards collective bargaining council for the domestic sector. COSATU recommends that the department should reconsider establishment of a domestic worker’s agency.Our main concern relates to the continued exclusion of the domestic workers from the UIF and COIDA. The Report does not provide any recommendations because these issues would be substantially considered in other processes. However, it could be better if the report recommends coverage of the domestic workers as informed by its comprehensive analysis of the sector. Their access to four months unpaid maternity leave would be may increase their poverty level due to the fact they are already earning low wages. They are unlikely to have any source of income. It is therefore proposed that domestic workers should be entitled to paid maternity leave.
We have further proposed for the establishment of provident for domestic workers. There would be a need for state supervision of these funds. Our proposal on the establishment of State regulated Agency could be linked with the enforcement and monitoring of these contributions. The effective co-ordination running of such funds would nee to be part of a comprehensive system of registering domestic workers and regulating the sector as a whole. We are concerned that the report does not express itself on this important policy matter.
We note that the Report provides five days family leave, which is two days more than the BCEA provisions. However, there are special circumstances of "live in" domestic workers. We propose that this sectoral determination should consider the provision additional dates for "live in" domestic workers. This would allow them to travel long distances to see their families, who are not staying with.
The exceptional living arrangements of the "live in" domestic workers justify some form of reasonable time for family leave. The "live-in" workers are staying with their employers and therefore effectively isolated from their family members. We welcome the intention to prescribe guidelines for transport allowance as part of the envisaged Code of Good Practice.
COSATU notes that the report provides a comprehensive analysis of socio-economic and labour market trends characterising the sector. We have specifically indicated that the Report has limitations on the following areas, namely, its proposal on the continuation of geographic differentiation between urban and rural areas in terms of setting a minimum wage, its failure to challenge the prevalence of low wages in the sector. Furthermore, its inability to consider the feasibility of establishing State regulated Agency to monitor enforcement in the sector, and the report’s failure to provide specific recommendation pertaining to the inclusion of the domestic workers into the UIF and COIDA. We believe the department would consider these issues in formulating sectoral determination. Furthermore, we are prepared to have discussions with the Department pertaining to the outstanding issues.
Footnotes:
2 COSATU Submission on Domestic Workers, presented to the Department of Labour, 7th September 1999.
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