Cabinet has approved the Seychelles Decent Work Country Programme 2019 to 2023 to be signed with the International Labour Organisation (ILO).

It is aimed at building on emerging challenges and lessons learnt from the first programme’s implementation 2011 -2015 and extended to 2017 for completion of targeted activities.

The programme entails three employment priorities to address challenges on the labour market. After consultations with stakeholders, relevant ministries, unions and employers the three priorities were identified. The first priority under the programme  is the creation of decent employment; targeting people with difficulty to access employment, informal employment; targeting people who work casually without a working contract and also to study the labour market to provide government with statistics for better intervention on policies for the next five years.

The second priority concerns the social dialogue with all stakeholders to be more proactive in educating workers and to develop collective agreement for better working conditions across sectors.

The third priority is to effectively implement the ILO standards through enforcing laws on the rights, responsibilities and education of workers. 

As explained by employment technical advisor, Susan Morel, all three relates to decent work which, according to ILO, involves opportunities for work that is productive and delivers a fair income, security in the workplace and social protection for families, better prospects for personal development and social integration, freedom for people to express their concerns, organise and participate in the decisions that affect their lives and equality of opportunity and treatment for all women and men.

Ms Morel said that it is expected people, especially the youths and women with children, will find it easier to access jobs and maintain their jobs while stakeholders play a more proactive role to advise government on better polices for the working environment. 

It is hoped that the national labour laws are drafted in a way that is favourable to promote productivity among the workforce.

This Decent Work Country Programme was developed by ILO for under and semi developed countries where the working conditions were not up to international standards in terms of equality between men and women over pay, discrimination,  equal pay for work of equal value, child workers, forced labour, among others. The programme is to prevent workers to be used as commodities for buying and selling on the labour market.

Co,pliments of Seychelles NATION.