FIJIAN tourism operators and industry stakeholders must ensure their organisations are fully prepared to embrace impending labour law revisions, says Ministry of Employment deputy secretary Atish Kumar.
Speaking at the HOTEC Tradeshow information session, Mr Kumar highlighted that the Ministry of Employment continues to receive a substantial volume of workplace complaints, largely driven by poor understanding at the practical management level.
Mr Kumar stressed that workplace compliance cannot remain confined to executive offices, but must instead reach every tier of an enterprise.
“What we have seen in the ministry is that there is a huge number of complaints coming in,” he said.
“You must take it right down to the grassroots level, I can say the shop-floor level and you must make sure that your employee who is manning the front desk is aware of the changes that have happened.”
Addressing record-keeping compliance, Mr Kumar reminded employers that existing legislation strictly mandates the retention of employment and wage records for six years, warning against reliance on paper archives or technical failures.
“The law provides that you must have a six-year employment record and it’s not that you need to get the printed copies; you can send us the digital copies.
“It’s the responsibility of the employer to ensure that you keep those records in place.”
Mr Kumar confirmed the ministry will conduct further educational sessions to assist businesses during the transition period.
