Monrovia, Liberia - President George Manneh Weah has called for the harmonization of Liberia’s labor laws toward creating conductive working environment and industrial growth and stability in the country.

He told participants at the first ever National Labor Conference held Monday, November 19, 2018 that harmonizing all labor-related laws was necessary to meeting international industrial standard and critical in improving business climate and workers welfare in Liberia.

The conference, organized by the Ministry of Labor and held under the theme, ‘A Decent Workforce under One Labor Law,’ was intended to seek reforms of the labor laws of Liberia.

The Liberian Leader said he was thrilled to be at the conference, the first to be held in the country since Liberia became member of the International Labor Conference.

He congratulated the leadership of the Ministry of Labor for “this all-important conference when Liberians are enjoying the dividends of peace, and anticipating the prospects and promise of national reconciliation.”

The President used the occasion to call on members of Liberian labor workforce and the people of Liberia to always use peaceful dialogue as a means of addressing their grievances, rather than using protests as the only resort.   

He acknowledged that a number of reforms have been made in addressing the needs and rights of formal, informal, domestic, and casual workers in the private sector. These, he noted, included the launching of the National Employment Policy, and the centralization of labor unions under the Liberia Labor Congress that will address issues arising within the sector.

The Liberian leader bemoaned the tendency of public sector employees being governed under the Civil Service Agency Standing Order where there is no recognition of the International Organization, and participation in any of its functions or compliance to its conventions.

He said: “This has not only deprived Liberian public servants from exercising some of their basic rights as workers under the Liberian Constitution, as well as ILO conventions to which Liberia is a signatory, but has also led to labour-market rigidity, and confusion in the administration and governance in the Liberian labor sector.”

President Weah expressed the hope that the Conference will produce a conducive atmosphere for all stakeholders to hold constructive discussions in all aspects of labor laws, with a view to harmonizing all inconsistencies and provide equal protection of workers in both public and private sectors of the Liberian workforce.

The Regional Country Director of the International Labor Organization in West Africa who served as the keynote speaker thanked President Weah for bringing together stakeholders to address and discuss the process of decent and good labor workforce in Liberia.

Mr. Dennis Zulu said it was an opportunity for the workforce in Liberia to come together to discuss ways forward for fair income, opportunities and freedom for the people. He noted that this will also help workers to express themselves under the decent workforce law in promoting the labor law that will reflect both the employees and the employers in Liberia.