On 28 and 29 March, representatives from the Department of Employment and Labour visited the Tshakhuma Fruit Market and Tshalovha Khumbe Market to assess the feasibility of transforming the informal sector into a more formal sector by providing benefits such as unemployment insurance fund, compensation for injuries and disease, the national minimum wage, and occupational health and safety to workers in the informal sector.
Advocate Fikiswa Bede, the national chief director advocacy and statutory services, explained the reason behind this research inspection. "As the world is shifting from the formal economy to the informal economy as a result of global economic challenges, the Departments of Employment and Labour and Inspection and Enforcement Services aim to protect all categories of workers (wage and non-wage) in terms of employment laws. The research inspections seek to assess the feasibility of assisting workers in the informal sector to access benefits accessible in the formal sector, such as claiming compensation in the case where they find themselves unemployed or unable to make an income or get injured while on duty."
According to him, the informal traders will have a different rate structure, which will be determined at a later stage once the Act is amended.
Some of the informal traders around the Tshakhuma area, however, were sceptical about this government initiative. "This is the first time we have been informed about it, so we are not very sure about the initiative. We have come across many scam projects in the past that sound good, but when it comes to claiming the money, it turns out to be an uphill task to be compensated," one of the traders said.