And we also asked Musa about his other portfolio: Labour. The Occupational Safety and Health Bill is one of its flagship pieces of legislation but as we told you, it's stuck at the Senate because the upper house requested further consultation to cover up what they see as major gaps.
At the last Senate meeting, they brought up the issue that domestic workers weren't covered under the OSH. Musa told us today that they actually have a lot more concerns than just that. He added that the ministry is trying to work with them despite the fact that these concerns are coming in so late.
However, a meeting of the Senate "Committee of the Whole" that was scheduled for the 14th was cancelled and, in an email from the clerk to the senators, the reason given was that the representatives from the ministry couldn't be of much assistance; they could only listen to the concerns, and suggested the senators submit them in writing instead.
We asked Musa about this.
Kareem Musa, Minister of Labor
"That's the first ever hearing of that, Courtney. I'm telling you this because the last occasion or CEO or labor commissioner was there to answer questions. The Senate has their own positions, their own beliefs, which they never presented throughout the what, over a decade worth of consultations, that this thing has been in place. They waited until the very last minute now to say they want to see these things in the OSH bill. We can't help them. We can only receive them and now see how we can incorporate these changes that they are now requesting. At first we thought it was only in relation to the domestic workers in households. That was all they raised in the first meeting. The second meeting, they had about eight different changes that they wanted to make. And so these are things that now have to be received for us to see how it is that we can incorporate as best as possible at this 11th hour, which they could have done many months and years ago, that they never did. But we are still accommodating them to see how it is that we can include their suggestions if they are rational suggestions. We haven't heard all of them yet. And to see how we can incorporate it in the bill if possible."
