The Speaker, Anita Among, has asked the leadership of Kampala Capital City Authority (KCCA) to attend to the concerns of casual laborers who recently demonstrated demanding pending payment for work done over the last six months.

The Speaker alluded to Article 40(1)(b) of the Constitution that provides for equal payment for equal work without discrimination.

“People cannot work without being paid; how are their families being looked after? We want those people to be paid because we know money has always been released for wages,” said Among, while chairing a plenary sitting on Wednesday, 28 February 2024.

Hon. Betty Ethel Naluyima (NUP, Wakiso district) said local governments across the country have been similarly affected, where casual laborers in different administrative units are not being effectively remunerated.

She noted that donor funding like DEG from Germany and local funding under Uganda Road Fund have not been released, which has limited the operations of local governments.

“We pray that as we are handling KCCA laborers, we also look into the matter of staff at local governments and what the entities are generally going through, concerning what they are supposed to do as far as the decentralisation role is concerned,” Naluyima said.

Hon. Stephen Kangwagye (Ind., Bukanga County) alluded to an engineering company under MBW Consulting Limited, that was contracted by Uganda Investment Authority (UIA), but has not been paid.

“The company did good work and UIA verified that the work was neatly done, but they did not pay them. The company has tried all avenues to pay their workers and meet bills but they have failed. It will be good for them to be heard by Ministry of Finance,” Kangwagye said.

Workers MP, Hon. Agnes Kunihira called for a re-examination of the Employment (Amendment) Bill, 2023 that sought to streamline the welfare of casual laborers in the country.

“We passed this Bill but we have not received any response on it to date. We need to protect such workers because they do not benefit in terms of saving with NSSF, getting leave among other issues,” Kunihira said.

The State Minister for KCCA and Metropolitan Affairs, Hon. Kyofatogabye Kabuye clarified that the casual laborers at the Authority are raising demands of pending payment for work done over the last four months.

The Speaker tasked the Minister to present a detailed report on the matter, to the House.