South Africa and Zimbabwe share a common destiny and the challenges facing Africa and the region can only be met through cooperation across national boundaries, the Minister of Labour, Membathisi Mdladlana, said in Harare Wednesday.
Mdadlana was speaking after discussions with his Zimbabwean counterpart, the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, July Moyo.
In a series of bilateral meetings held on Wednesday the two ministers discussed a wide range of issues including that of Zimbabweans working on South African farms and a proposed Memorandum of Understanding aimed at formalising cooperation between the two countries in the field of employment and labour.
The two ministers expressed a mutual concern about the state of the region’s labour market and emphasised that there was a need for joint regulation. Mdladlana emphasised that it was vital that an education process took place on both sides of the border to ensure that Zimbabweans and South Africans were knowledgeable about the employment of foreign nationals.
Mdladlana added that the employment of illegal aliens in South Africa was a criminal offence. He also said that Zimbabwe offered South Africa some useful lessons in
terms of labour law.
”I am encouraged by the Zimbabwean National Social Security Authority which offers all Zimbabwean workers comprehensive unemployment insurance.
”The distribution of work permits also falls under the ambit of the Zimbabwean Department of Labour, which allows for a far more efficient system than currently enjoyed in South Africa, where this process is administered by the Department of Home Affairs,” Mdladlana said.
Moyo said that the Zimbabwean Labour Department’s administration of the issuing of work permits ensured that applications from foreign nationals were weighed against national skill requirements. – I-Net Bridge