The Fiji Public Service Association has called for certain provisions in the Employment Relations Amendment Bill to be removed.

Association General Secretary Rajeshwar Singh presented the FPSA submissions before the Committee on Justice, Law and Human Rights.

According to Singh, the Amendment Bill includes clauses which are not acceptable to the union movement – one being the inclusion of essential service regulations.

“They have taken dangerous parts of ENI (Essential National Industries) Decree 35/11 and planted it in this Bill. This Bill is about cut and paste job.”

The General Secretary of the FPSA says the biggest concern union has – deals with Section 191 of the Bill – a lengthy inclusion which refers to arbitration and collective bargaining among other things.

The FPSA also recommends that criminal offenses and fines in the Bill be converted to civil matters to be taken to arbitration or the High Court.