The Ministry of Labour, Industrial Relations and Employment Creation has only 68 Labour Inspectors in place, out of a budgeted 163 positions that need to be filled.
“The structure caters for 163 Labour Inspectors combined to conduct inspections concerning both Basic Conditions of employment and Occupational Safety and Health. However, only 68 positions are filled, leaving 95 positions vacant. Out of these, 62 positions are not funded due to limited budgetary provisions, and 33 positions are in the process of being filled as a result of labour turnover,” Labour Minister Uutoni Nujoma said.
He said due to these limitations, Labour Inspectors could only conduct a total of 2,250 workplace inspections countrywide. Of these, 1,544 labour inspections were to verify compliance with basic conditions of employment, and 706 inspections were to verify compliance with occupational health and safety standards as well as the safety of dangerous machinery.
This has resulted in the Ministry recovering only N$1.8 million on behalf of complainants from non-compliant employers.
“A further challenge hampering the delivery of services is the limited, aged, and worn-out fleet. This can leave Labour Inspectors, Arbitrators, and Employment Officers utilising one vehicle for the whole regional office, while some regional offices remain without any vehicle to enable these staff members to carry out this important national mandate,” the minister said.
In addition to inspections, the Minister also said the Ministry’s Arbitrators handled a total of 5,612 labour cases in 2023.
Through conciliation and arbitration processes, 2,818 disputes were successfully resolved, with the remaining 2,794 on track for finalisation.
