Speaking at the 21st Annual Labour Law Conference held in Sandton on Thursday, 26 June 2008, the minister said workers who had no means of getting to work and arrived with hungry stomachs could not be productive.
“Productivity depends on investment. It is only when we invest more in our workers that we can demand more from them,” Mdladlana said.
“We must train our workers, and must reward them accordingly,” he said, adding that employers should not short-change their staff.
With regard to the recent attacks on people from foreign countries, the minister said people living in informal settlements were misled into believing that their genuine concerns about poverty and unemployment were caused by people from other countries.
“Our own analysis on labour migration has shown that South Africa gains economically from entry by fellow Africans. It is therefore a misconception to conclude that migrants steal jobs from South Africans,” Mdladlana said.
The minister also called on employers to help government regularise migration.
“We should encourage legal entry of fellow Africans into our country, and ensure that all migrant labourers are properly documented like any other South African, and that the laws of the country should equally apply to them.
“It does not benefit anyone, whether it is an illegal migrant labourer or an employer, to allow illegal migration to persist. It only encourages exploitation on the part of the migrant worker and risk on the part of an employer,” he said.
Article published courtesy of BuaNews
