New mobile app to improve Ministry of Labour’s service delivery

The Labour Ministry will be revolutionising its operations in keeping with trends of the digital age, by introducing a new digital complaint and mobile application system.
Announcing this move was Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton on Monday as the budget debate got underway in the dome of the Arthur Chung Conference Centre (ACCC), Liliendaal, Greater Georgetown. Though a user-friendly mobile application, tailored for employers and employees, labour violations and complaints can be tendered.
Minister Hamilton directed that this investment would provide an intuitive interface for easy accessibility and inclusivity.

He divulged, “Technological measures to improve accessibility, quality, efficiency and effectiveness will be pursued. In 2024, digital complaint and an inspection management system with mobile application will be implemented. The system will allow for real-time data, which can be used to develop strategies and also to inform policy makers.”
When an employee makes a complaint, the Ministry invites both the employer and the employee to a meeting to hear both parties and then based on the facts and circumstances, a decision/recommendation is made in keeping with Guyana’s labour laws.
The Ministry’s primary goal is to resolve all complaints amicably, and to ensure that the process is fair, transparent and without prejudice or bias. If the decision made is in favour of the employee, and the employer does not honour that decision, then the case is taken to the Magistrate’s Court for enforcement.
Since assuming office, Government has established officers in all administrative regions, moving their complement from nine to 30 workers.
In less than four years, 6872 workplace inspections were conducted by the Ministry, thereby reaching more than 15,000 workers.
Regular workplace inspections have continued in all regions to ensure that businesses and companies comply with all regulations. In 2023, more than 2700 inspections were conducted and two employers were charged for paying their workers below minimum wage.
“In 2023, we had a 14 per cent decline in complaints received when compared to 2022. This is evidence that the Ministry’s policies, programmes and initiatives are efficient, effective and working. Under the APNU/AFC [A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change] in 2015, when they took up office, the number of complaints to the Labour Department increased by 51 per cent.”
Hamilton shared that there were 5497 complaints under the former Administration. In comparison, that same period under the PPP saw 3103 complaints.
The Ministry also recovered $160 million in restitution where employees were owed by employers – including $69 million for last year.
The Labour Minister also revealed that workplace deaths have been down by 37 per cent, when compared to the last year of the APNU/AFC’s term. At that time, the death toll stood at 32 persons.