Parliamentary Forum on Labour suggested passing of Labour Migration Laws
On June 13th, 2023, the Parliamentary Forum on Labour, Decent Employment, and Productivity suggested passing legislation to regulate labor migration in Uganda. Thomas Tayebwa, the deputy speaker of parliament, supported the proposal during a conference emphasizing the importance of regulations to protect workers from exploitation and encouraged employers to pay taxes and contribute to social security.
On Tuesday 13th June 2023, the Parliamentary Forum on Labour, Decent Employment, and Productivity suggested passing legislation to control labor migration. Thomas Tayebwa, the deputy speaker of parliament, accepted the choice during a one-day conference on Tuesday at the Kampala Imperial Royale Hotel.
“I think it’s high time parliament moved a private members bill to put in place a law that regulates and governs labour migration in Uganda,“ said Tayebwa, while addressing participants at the forum as Guest of Honor.
According to Rt. Hon. Tayebwa, regulations are needed to safeguard workers from exploitation by their employers, both inside and outside of Uganda. Employment issues are extremely important. If company growth is to be achieved, he continued, trust between employers and employees needs to be increased.
Mr. Tayebwa urged employers to make an effort to pay Pay As You Earn (PAYE) taxes and employees’ payments to National Social Security (NSSF) in order to support them once they reach retirement age.
He recommended workers to use their meager pay as capital for worthwhile businesses so they can earn even after they leave their current jobs.
“About 61 percent of US employed citizens invest their money in the stock exchange, where for example, an employee who invests $US 1000 to Amazon gets $US 2 million after 10 years,” Tayebwa said.
Resatul Islam, a representative of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) at the conference, stated that migrant workers’ rights must be protected by cracking down on those who traffic people for the purpose of exploitation of their labor overseas.
He listed several tactics used by human traffickers to entice victims, including the use of coercion, deception or misleading conviction, payment, or abuse of a position of weakness with the intention of exploitation.
Sarah Mateke, the Minister of State for Youth and Children Affairs, emphasized the importance of all parties involved in the protection of migrant workers adhering to current labor externalization legislation. She claimed that the labor externalization program is one of Uganda’s sources of foreign cash and must be safeguarded.
The meeting was put together in collaboration with the Government of Uganda, IOM, the Belgian Embassy, and Enable.
