The Chief Public Relations Officer at the Ministry of Justice and Labour Relations, Maria Hedimbi, has revealed that they have been sending out labour inspectors to assess whether businesses are complying with the wage order.

As of the 1st of January this year, the minimum wage for all workers in Namibia increased to N$18, except for domestic workers, farmworkers, and security workers, whose wages will increase gradually over the course of three years.

Hedimbi urged employees to report to the office of the Labour Commissioner if their employers do not comply with the minimum wage order.

"In terms of disputes arising between employers and employees, there is a provision for this, and the ministry has an office that deals with labour disputes. The aggrieved party, in most cases employees, can launch their official case to the office of the Labour Commissioner for the case to be heard before an arbitrator, who will then make a decision on the matter."

Hedimbi says they have established that out of the 302 businesses they have visited, about 87 percent have been compliant.

She says follow-up inspections will be conducted for those who fail to comply to ensure compliance.

"When conducting a workplace inspection, it was not only done in terms of the national minimum wage but also looked at the provisions of the law, especially Chapter Three of the Labour Act, which discusses the basic conditions of service. Through that inspection, some companies were found not to be complying, and the ministry issued four compliance orders to those employers who were not in compliance with the provisions of the national minimum wage."

Hedimbi says they have received requests for exemptions from various companies; however, the ministry has not awarded any exemptions due to a lack of good reasoning.

She says the ministry will soon launch an SMS line in the next few days with the intention of addressing complaints from the public.