Parliament has passed a bill to amend the Employment Relations Act which will now allow women to work in underground mines.
As we celebrated International Women’s Day yesterday, Attorney General, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said that given that Fiji is a state party to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, it is imperative that our laws are aligned to our state obligations under the convention.
The bill seeks to remove section 88 of the Employment Relations Act 2007. Section 88 of the Act states that an employer is not prevented from prohibiting the employment of females in underground work in mines of all kinds except in management positions not requiring manual work, in health and welfare services, in education or training; or for occasional non‑manual work.
Sayed-Khaiyum says this prohibition perpetuates gender stereotyping in the mining sector and if not remedied will continue to be a barrier for females.
He says females should be accorded the same employment rights as males to work wherever they choose to work.
