By Kuvee Kangueehi Windhoek The final months of 2006 and the beginning of 2007 have been marked by an upsurge of labour unrest in the country. Workers downed tools at establishments like the Windhoek Country Club and Resort (WCCR), Ramatex, Rosh Pinah Mine, while labour disputes are currently under way at NovaNam and Windhoek Schlachterei. New Era spoke to the Director of Labour Resource and Research Institute (Larri), Herbert Jauch, and the Secretary-General of Namibia Employers’ Federation (NEF) about the current labour situation. While Parkhouse described labour relations in the country as good with some room for improvement, Jauch said the labour relations were currently tense and needed to be addressed. Jauch said the tension which has lately been witnessed in the labour sector can be attributed to wage disputes, unfair labour practices and discrimination, as well as unilateral decisions by management. He said some companies still believe in the top-down management approach and are not willing to discuss labour issues such as restructuring with the workers or their union representatives. Jauch singled out the Ohlthaver & List Group of Companies as a classical example. “The management at O&L takes decisions which affect workers without consulting them, and imposes the new decisions on the workers, and this creates tension between the workers and management.” The director said the company decided a few years ago to close down the Hansa Breweries without consulting the workers, and recently took the same decision at the Windhoek Schlacterei. Jauch noted that the idea of social dialogue was needed to ease the tensions and both parties must be honest with each other. He added that last year, the O&L Group reported profits in the local media, but a few months down the line they are claiming that the company is not making profits and is closing down. Parkhouse said restructuring should be done solely on the basis of economics. He noted that it is the prerogative of the employer and management to decide how it must restructure the company in order to make profits. “It is the duty of the employer to make profits – not exorbitant, but reasonable profits – in order to grow the company.” Parkhouse added that the workers should realize that the duty of the employer is not only to provide jobs for those employed but also to create job opportunities for those not employed. “As employers, we are looking at the development of the country through skills development and creating an investor-friendly environment. He said investors want skilled labour, productivity and labour stability.” Jauch further noted that not all sectors are unstable, and that the public service has been stable over the years. “The fishing sector and the wholesale and retail sectors are more volatile, and this is because of the nature of the business.” He added that the nature of the business forces the employer to resort to labour hire, which is a bad labour practice as the employees suffer financially. Parkhouse echoed Jauch’s sentiments and said the fishing sector was highly volatile because it is easily affected by natural factors, exchange rates and government legislation such as the control of fish stocks. The Secretary-General said uncertainty in the sector creates tension between the workers and employers. “The sector is seasonal, and during the off-season it becomes very costly for the employer. Where does the employer get money when the factory closes?” he wanted to know. On the role of the unions in the country, Jauch said that over the years the different unions have gained lessons on how to address labour problems. “Contrary to popular belief, unions are not always willing to strike as it is difficult to convince workers to strike because they lose income.” He noted that unions usually only use strikes as the last resort and, in most cases, the confrontational attitude of the employer forces them to take that route. He added that the unions had also experienced mixed results during last year. They had successful strikes at Ramatex, WCCR and Rosh Pinah, but were ineffective at Swakopmund with the closure of the breweries. Parkhouse said unions should keep politics out of labour issues. “They should look at business and labour and the ultimate development of the country.” In conclusion, Jauch said that although labour strikes were part and parcel of any democratic society, a lasting solution should be found. Addressing income disparities on a global scale has proven that it improves labour relations. He noted that in countries such as Sweden where the income gap has been minimized, there is greater social peace and little unrest. Workers generally feel a sense of injustice if their managers earn thousands of dollars while at the same time claiming that there are no funds to improve the wor-king conditions of the wor-kers, he said.