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Fiji - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Suva

 

CLIMATE

Tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation.

 

LANGUAGES

English (official), Fijian and Hindustani.

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

Based on the British system.

 

CURRENCY

Fiji dollars (1 USD = 2.26501 FJD as of April 15, 2002).

 

FIJI - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

FIJI - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U. S. Embassy at Suva

31 Loftus St.

P.O. Box 218

Suva, Fiji

Telephone: [679] 314-466

Fax: [679] 300-081

http://www.amembassy-fiji.gov

 

Embassy of Fiji at Washington D.C.

2233 Wisconsin Avenue N.W., Suite 240

Washington D.C. 20007

Telephone: (202) 337-8320

Fax: (202) 337-1996

 

FIJI - HOLIDAYS

FIJI – LEAVE

Maternity Leave: 84 days paid at a flat rate (paid by employer).

 

FIJI - MINIMUM AGE

Children under the age of 12 may not be employed in any capacity. "Children" (under age 15) may only be employed outside of school hours in family enterprises and not in the industrial sector. "Young persons" (ages 15 to 17) may be employed in certain occupations not involving heavy machinery and with specified hours and rest breaks.

 

(Section 6.d. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Fiji – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

FIJI - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

There is no minimum wage prescribed by law.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Fiji – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

FIJI - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

FIJI - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The law protects the right of workers to form and join unions, elect their own representatives, publicize their views on labor matters, and determine their own policies, and the authorities respect these rights in practice. However, the law permits restrictions to be applied in government employment and in the interests of defense, public safety, public order, public morality, or public health, or to protect the rights and freedoms of other persons. An estimated 55 percent of the workforce is unionized.

 

All unions must register with, but are not controlled by, the Government. The only central labor body is the Fiji Trades Union Congress (FTUC), which in the past was associated closely with the opposition Fiji Labor Party; unions operate under its auspices. The FTUC has in recent years adopted a more independent political stance. While certain unions remain ethnically based, both Indo-Fijians and ethnic Fijians hold leadership roles in the trade union movement. In the past, the FTUC participated, along with the employer's federation, in the Government's Tripartite Economic Strategies Committee; however, it has not been active since the seizure of Parliament in May 2000.

 

Strikes are legal, except in connection with union recognition disputes, and trade unions can conduct secret strike ballots without government supervision.

 

In order to carry out a legal strike, organizers must notify the employer 28 days prior to the start of the strike. The Ministry of Labor also must be notified of the dispute and receive a list of all striking employees, the starting date of the strike, and location of strike. This information gives the organizers, unions, employers, and Ministry of Labor time to resolve the dispute prior to a strike. During the year, at different times, workers at a prominent resort, airport firefighters, and customs workers went on strike. However, because they did not follow the provisions of the law, the Ministry of Labor declared these strikes illegal and ordered the strikers back to work within

 

24 hours of the strike; the workers complied, and none of the strikes was violent. The striking hotel workers were given a pay raise, but this raise was regarded as a gesture by the management. The only legal strike during the year was carried out in February by sugar workers, who fall under different employment legislation. The workers received a nominal pay increase; however, the strike attracted media attention. Workers in the mining industry also are regulated by different legislation. FTUC officials operated without interference during the year.

 

Unions can affiliate internationally, and the FTUC does so.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

Unions have the right to organize and bargain collectively. Employers are required to recognize a union if more than half of the employees in a workplace have joined it. The Government has the power to order recalcitrant employers to recognize unions and has done so. Recognition is governed by membership rather than election. Key sectors of the economy, including sugar and tourism, are heavily unionized. However, there are no laws to protect workers who organize unions in a factory. While the law encourages unionization, union organizers' jobs are not protected. Since employers reserve the right to fire union organizers, some workers are afraid to unionize. Thus unions are effective bargaining tools for older, more established industries, such as sugar and mining; however, for newer industries, such as the garment industry, unions are not as effective. Wage negotiations generally are conducted at individual companies rather than on an industry-wide basis; industry wide bargaining no longer is increasing.

 

Export processing zones (EPZ's) are subject to the same laws as the rest of the country. However, the FTUC has been unsuccessful in obtaining collective bargaining agreements in EPZ's and claims that intimidation of workers by employers is widespread. The FTUC sees union recognition as the single issue that does not have effective legal recourse. The FTUC argues that because of alleged illegal and intimidating practices in EPZ's, including threats of loss of work for those active in organizing workers, unions are unfairly prevented from representing workers in the EPZ's.

 

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The Constitution specifically prohibits forced labor, including forced and bonded labor by children; trafficking in persons is not a significant problem. There were no further reports that a form of bonded labor may be practiced on a copra plantation on an outer island. There were no confirmed reports of forced or compulsory labor. Media reports and NGO's allege that work conditions in some garment factories may include bonded or forced labor and excessive work hours. The Fiji Sun reported in August that garment workers intended to unionize in order to improve working conditions and end forced labor; they reportedly suffered from harsh work discipline and inadequate sanitary facilities. Factory housing for garment workers is overcrowded.

 

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age of Employment

 

The Government has adopted some laws to protect children from exploitation in the workplace, but enforcement of these laws is lax. Children under the age of 12 may not be employed in any capacity. "Children" (under age 15) may only be employed outside of school hours in family enterprises and not in the industrial sector. "Young persons" (ages 15 to 17) may be employed in certain occupations not involving heavy machinery and with specified hours and rest breaks. Enforcement by the Ministry of Labor generally is ineffective for child labor. There are only two inspectors at the Ministry of Labor, and there are no investigators to follow up on claims or reports. The inspectors are mandated to conduct regular annual inspections. During the year, there also was a rise in youth employment in the informal sector. There has been an increase in "self-employed" school-age youths in urban areas, particularly as shoeshine boys, in auto repair shops, and in prostitution.

 

The Government has not ratified ILO Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labor. The law does not define the worst forms of child labor. The laws for implementing and enforcing child labor regulations are insufficient; there are no adequate enforcement remedies and no comprehensive policy for eliminating the worst forms of child labor.

 

The Government prohibits forced and bonded child labor; however, informal child labor does occur.

 

e. Acceptable Work Conditions

 

There is neither a national minimum wage nor a limit on maximum hours for working. Certain sectors have minimum wages set by the Ministry for Labor. Minimum wage levels provide a sparse but adequate standard of living for a worker and family in all sectors except the garment sector. There are no regulations specifying maximum hours of work for adult males. Other than a prohibition from working in mines, there are no limitations on female employment. Workers in some industries, notably transportation and shipping, work excessive hours.

 

There are workplace safety regulations, a Worker's Compensation Act, and an accident compensation plan. Government enforcement of safety standards suffers from a lack of trained personnel and lags in compensation hearings and rulings. Unions generally monitor safety standards in organized workplaces, yet many work areas do not meet standards and are not monitored by the Ministry of Labor for compliance. The ILO maintains an office in Suva. By law an employee has the right to remove himself from a hazardous work site without jeopardizing his employment, but most fear the loss of their jobs if they do so.

 

Particularly in the garment sector, migrant workers (predominantly Chinese) are increasing in number and are a largely nonunionized and sometimes illegal work force.

 

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

There are no laws that specifically address trafficking in persons, although laws against procuring a woman to become a prostitute, kidnaping, and bonded and forced labor could be used to prosecute traffickers; however, trafficking in persons was not a significant problem. There were no reports of trafficking in persons to, from, or within the country during the year. There was an increase during the year in persons arriving or transiting the country with altered or falsified travel documents; however, it is not clear whether these persons were smuggled or trafficked. Nadi International Airport is a hub of travel in the Pacific, and an increasing number of Asian nationals without appropriate travel papers have been apprehended and deported. Police have received periodic, unsubstantiated reports of forced labor from China working in the garment factories in Western Viti Levu, the country's largest island, but law enforcement has made no arrests and has not investigated the reports. The police believe that an organized Asian criminal network exists in the country that coordinates illegal trafficking in persons. There were no reports during the year that Chinese women working in the garment industry were involved in prostitution, or that some laborers recruited from Asian countries, particularly in the garment sector, were held in conditions of forced labor.

 

FIJI - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

 

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

 

FIJI - STANDARD WORKWEEK

There is no standard workweek prescribed by law.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Fiji – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)