New employment regulation amendments already in force |20 July 2019

Minister Telemaque flanked by PS Baker (left) and Mr Monnaie during the press conference

The department of employment recently announced a number of regulation amendments and administrative changes, all of which are already in effect.

These were announced by the Minister for Employment, Immigration and Civil Status Myriam Telemaque during a press conference.

Minister Telemaque first revealed that, as per President Danny Faure’s announcement on the occasion of the Labour Day, the regulations concerning sick leave has been revised by the department of employment.

As of now, an employee no longer enjoys the benefits of 30 days sick leave since this has been reduced to 21 days.

However the amended regulations provide parents with seven additional days for when their children, who have to be aged less than 12 years old, are confirmed sick by a certified doctor.

“If there are cases where the employee needs more time to stay with their child or even for themselves, existing provisions provides for 30 days paid leave and 60 days unpaid leave,” Minister Telemaque added.

The department has also introduced a new regulation which guides how domestic workers should be treated and which is aimed at protecting their rights, since this demographic are more susceptible to abuse.

Domestic workers are people who work in private households in various capacities such as maids and nannies.

“The department of employment feels that domestic workers are vulnerable, and these include both foreigners and locals, because they are working and sometimes living in someone’s home. So there is a need to enforce a regulation to protect them,” the minister explained.

Minister Telemaque said that domestic workers will be afforded additional protection under the regulation.

They are now entitled a 30-minute break after four hours of work, those who are also living in their employer’s home should be doing so free of charge and they should be provided with all the basic utilities and facilities.

“Domestic workers should now also be able to enjoy their free time to rest and recuperate, and to spend it with family and friends,” the minister added.

In regards to administrative changes, the employment department has introduced a new fee for the application of foreign workers which has been set to R150.

In cases of appeals, employers will be charged an additional R250.

Meanwhile the attestation fee have hiked up by R250 and instead of costing R500, it now costs R750.

“And to at least give a good service to the public, we have moved the unit responsible for the attestation of contracts from the first floor of the Independence House, at the employment department, to the ground floor where the customer service office and payments booths are located,” Minister Telemaque also revealed.

This will facilitate all of the employers who are coming to deposit their applications since the services will be quicker and available under one roof, making it more effective.

Also present during the press conference were the principal secretary for employment Jules Baker and Steve Monnaie who is the director general for labour relations.