Good morning members of the press, news reaching us this morning the State Minister for Labor, employment, and Industrial Relations Rt Col. Charles Engola by a UPDF officer in Kyanja.
According to the eyewitnesses, the officer killed the Minister and he also killed himself. The eyewitnesses also stated that he said, he didn’t want to kill anyone else his only problem was with the government which has failed to pay him for the last 5 months.
International Labor Day
International Workers’ Day, also known as Labour Day in some countries and often referred to as May Day, is a celebration of labourers and the working classes that is promoted by the international labour movement and occurs every year on 1 May.
This day is used around the world to celebrate the achievement of all workers.
However, workers feel beneficial when gov’t has helped in their daily challenges they face at work.
In Uganda workers have no reason to celebrate this day because their welfare at work deteriorates on a daily basis.
Employers in Uganda pay any amount to a worker because we don’t have a minimum wage.
Factories pay 1000 shillings per day and workers have no where to complain complain.
The labor unions who were meant to fight for the workers like NATU, those of Doctors etc were deliberately killed by government. They are nolonger fighting for workers but fighting for themselves.
That’s why we are seeing the intern doctors fighting for themselves without the bigger labor unions.
In Uganda we need a labor union like the one in Kenya called Central organization of Labor union headed by Francis Atwoli which advocates for workers.
On top of that, the NSSF where workers have to save is full of scandals, the little amount saved is being swindled without any clear clarification yet this is the only body where workers could be happy of because they could expect some money at retirement but as we talk now no one knows if he or she will be paid or not.
Government has deliberately refused to liberalise NSSF by allowing the private organisations also save the worker’s money.
This can create some transparency in saving for the workers.
The External workers are in the hands of those who take take them and those who employ them. That’s why body organs are taken and they have no where to report.
Kiirya Ismail
UYD PRESIDENT
