The Ministry of Labour, Industrial relations and Employment Creation, achieved 48% of the targeted 67% of the prevention and settlement of industrial disputes, and workplace protection target in 2023.
The ministry said a total of 4917 cases were handled through labour dispute resolution mechanism of which 2336 (48%) were resolved and 2 580 were still pending due to postponements.
Conciliation remains the preferred method of resolving disputes, with 1 765 (76%) of the disputes resolved through conciliation, while 571 (24%) were resolved through arbitration, according to the ministry.
The Employment Equity Commission received a total of 1 043 reports of which all were reviewed, then considered and approved or disapproved by the Commission. From the total reports, 904 were approved, translating in 87%.
When it comes to labour services, the workplace inspection conducted for basic conditions of employment and occupational health and safety saw 2582 inspections in total with 1577 inspections complying with basic conditions of employment while 1005 inspections were to verify compliance with health and safety standards.
The ministry further investigated the recorded 13 notifications of occupational accidents of which eight major accidents and five fatal accidents. The ministry attended to and resolved 3486 (73%) of 4793 labour complaints received, of which an amount of N$2,8 million was recovered from employers on behalf of complainants.
The ministry said about 17 912 jobseekers were registered while 554 designated employers were also registered in 2023.
