24 Sep 2007

Mixed reaction to decision to shelve Fiji's new Employment Relations Bill for six months

1:19 pm on 24 September 2007

The decision by Fiji's interim government to shelve the new Employment Relations Bill for six months has brought mixed reaction.

The Chamber of Commerce and the Council of Trade Unions have welcomed the decision saying it will give them more time to iron out contents within the Bill.

But the General Secretary of the Fiji Teachers Union, Agni Deo Singh, says he's disappointed because the delay means workers will have to wait longer for benefits like maternity leave.

"All working mothers would get their full paid 84 days leave for three confinement and also there are a large number of workers that do not belong to any union, this load have seen them having the opportunity to restart disputes individually and pursue their grievance through the machinery."

All three also say that they want a legally elected government to implement the Bill.