Report by Alpha Daffae Senkpeni, [email protected]
Monrovia – On Tuesday March 8, the Ministry of Labour collaborated with the embassy of the People’s Republic of China near Monrovia to explain Liberia’s labour law to staffs of Chinese companies operating in the country.
The event, held at the Chinese embassy, brought together Liberians and Chinese workers, encouraging discussions on critical issues in the Decent Work Act of 2015.
It intended to minimize misunderstandings of the law, improve full compliance by the firms and help improve relationship between the investors and the labour ministry.
Speaking before the start of the seminar, Chinese Ambassador Fu Jijun was hopeful that “the seminar will become a new start for strengthening the understanding between the employees and the companies” and expands collaborations amongst the embassy, the ministry and Chinese firms in the country.
Ambassador Fu reemphasized that his country is committed to supporting Liberia’s pro-poor agenda and called for strengthening mutual understanding between the labour ministry and Chinese companies.
He said the embassy always encourage Chinese firms to comply with Liberia’s labour laws, attached importance to environmental protection, respect the local customs and traditions, treat employees well and respond to feedbacks from communities where they operate.
“I am glad that Chinese companies in Liberia have been attaching importance to on-the-job training, and quite a lot of Liberian employees have learned the skills to run the engineering equipment and become technicians, team leaders and members of the management team,” the top Chinese diplomat said.
Togba Croyee Porte, Assistant Labour Minister for Trade Union Affairs and Social Dialogue, presented a copy of the Decent Work Act to the Ambassador and asked him to help translate the law into the Chinese language so that it is easily understood by Chinese investors and managers in the country.
“The interpretation of our laws in their language will help us foster this kind of great business relationship to allow them understand the law and the Liberian government expectation,” Porte told FrontPageAfrica after the seminar.
“And I think it will be a win-win for the Chinese firms and it will bring more cooperation to us and the Chinese government.”
He added that language and culture barriers are some impediments that lead to violations of the labour laws by the Chinese.
“This is why this seminar is very important because it gives us the opportunity to sit with the Chinese to see their ways and understand what their thinking is – then we will engage them on proceeding and make our partnership better,” he said, adding that the initiative will allow foreign business partners understand the law as a means of further protecting Liberia workers.
“We feel that this kind of initiative is needed across the board, not just for the Chinese but for every investor in the country,” he said, disclosing that the ministry has embarked on a nationwide inspection of companies.
Meanwhile, 14 Liberian and Chinese employees working for various Chinese firms in the country were honoured by the embassy for their outstanding and dedicated work.