Wage agreement signed

Rudi Bowe

Kuiseb Fishing Enterprises (KFE) and the Namibia Fishing Industry and Fisher-man Workers Union (NFI & FWU) signed a recognition and procedural agreement on Wednesday, 7 August in Walvis Bay.

KFE and NFI& FWU have agreed to enter into there cognition and procedural agreement to simply manage industrial relations between both parties. The agreement lays down procedures to be followed in terms of engaging both parties and seeking reasonable and satisfactory solution to matters of common interest.
KFE General Manager Albert Samakupa said at the signing event that KFE has invested about N$300 million over the years in the fishing sector through earnings generated from harvesting marine resources as made possible through the fishing rights and annual quota granted by the Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources.
Samakupa added that this has resulted in the creation of 81 jobs at Kuiseb and its subsidiaries and also contributed to the employment of 38 foreign and 294 Namibians at Hodago Fishing, a joint venture with its partners Gendev and Venmar.
KFE remains committed towards creating more sustainable jobs through investments in the fisheries sector.
We are considering to introduce an equity based participation of employees through a workers trust and employees are to benefit directly through dividends paid by the trust.
This envisaged projects and plans will be realised if KFE fishing right is renewed early 2020 and quota granted annually as per norm” Samakupa added.
KFE allowed their employees to join the Union of their choice. And in this case it was NFI & FWU. This made the said union the most important stakeholder for KFE that need to be engaged to promote a pleasant working relationship between the company and the employees.
The President of NFI & FWU Daniel Imbili said that that the signing of the 3 recognition agreements is a historical day in the existence of KFE and that it will pave a healthy working relationship between the employer, employees and the union.
Gone are the years when both parties have treated each other as enemies. We wish to see peace with-in the fishing industry and all parties to acknowledge each other as partners” Imbili added.
Imbili said “We at NFI & FWU would like to see an employer and employee relation establish on a sound healthy relationship when evil af strike will be something of the past and KFE take the lead in the fishing industries in terms of making its employees partners within the company”.
Imbili added that NFI & FWU is confident that the Minister of Fisheries will look with a different eye to fishing companies who comply with the score card criteria’s set out by his office when applying for quotas.
Imbili would like the KFE management to have an open door policy as this will build trust within the employees by feeling not left out or excluded in decision making without being consulted.