Salary Adjustment: The “Remuneration Regulations” again “gazetted” under a different section of the law

The 32 Remuneration Regulations were gazetted, this time, under section 94 of the Employment Relations Act. On September 13, it was under section 106 of the Act that the exercise was done. According to Business Mauritius, this was the point that posed a problem, because this section does not authorize the minister to make salary adjustments. While maintaining that everything had been done legally with the advice of the State Law Office, the Ministry of Labour re-gazetted the remuneration orders on Tuesday, under sections 106 and 94 of the Act, which exempts the minister from going through the National Remuneration Board (NRB) for salary adjustments. This measure, explains the ministry, is intended to dispel all doubts.

At a press conference of the General Workers Federation and its union partners, Ashok Subron was clear. This legality problem was predictable. “It was expected that when the law was amended to relax the conditions for hiring foreign workers in the Finance Act as a gift to Business Mauritius, the law to ensure wage adjustment would also be included because the calculation was simple.”

Recall Parliament

This is why he felt that Parliament had to be recalled before the by-election, or at least before the dissolution, to vote on a law guaranteeing the payment of this salary readjustment.

Ashok Subron recalled that after the press conference on August 9, there was a statement saying that the workers should be paid. “But it had no legal weight.” When the ROs were finally gazetted, he added, he had pointed out that the fact that this section had been used would be exploited by the employers. “That is what happened. Moreover, they did not say that they were going to court. They are asking for further negotiations. It was when the Finance Bill was passed that payment should have been ensured without dispute.” Regarding Soodesh Callichurn’s press conference, Ashok Subron felt that he had reduced the workers to an electoral target, without any other consideration.

However, Reeaz Chuttoo, spokesperson for the Confederation of Public and Private Sector Workers, said he considered that there was absolutely no need to recall Parliament. This step would only serve to "make the boss win the letan". He recalled that every year, when paying salary compensation, the NRB reviewed the ROs to maintain relativity and that this did not mean that the laws had been amended or that consultations had been conducted. He reiterated his call for a strike in all companies where the readjustments were not paid by the end of October.