Labour expert calls for retrenchment intervention

Government needs to pass additional regulations that explicitly prevent the retrenchment of workers during lockdown, the Economic and Social Justice Trust (ESJT) says.
Labour expert and chairman of the ESJT, Herbert Jauch, issued a statement this morning saying legislation states that work can be reduced for a period of up to three months and possibly longer, while workers need to receive at least 50% of their wages during this period.
“This, however, is not sufficient to deal with the current crisis as some employers have already started retrenching workers or sending them home on unpaid leave,” Jauch says.
Employers should be required to continue paying their staff, he says. “In cases where they are financially unable to do so, they must provide proof to government as a precondition to be assisted through tax exemptions, ect.”
Jauch says a particular focus will have to be on SMEs who will face the greatest challenges in maintaining and paying workers.