Labour Day: Celebration in shadow of violating workers' rights.

In Yaounde, the main focus of activities, the Minister of Labour and Social Security, Gregoire Owona, who presided the ceremony, said the day emphasised workers’ rights, improved labour conditions, and strengthening of social dialogue; under the theme: “Social Dialogue and Decent Work: Factors of Peace, National Cohesion and Economic Development of the Company”.

But in the shadow of the festivities and a flattering theme are significant challenges regarding workers' rights in Cameroon. 

Such violations as have been pointed out repeatedly by various human rights organisations, include restrictions on trade union organisations, government interference in trade union activities, and gender-based discrimination.

Such reports have also highlighted a decline in job security and worker protections, exacerbated by economic challenges and conflicts in the North West, South West and the Far North Regions; where sporadic fighting, involving security forces and armed groups impact overall human rights, including by extension, labour rights and economic activity.

While there are commendable government efforts to align national legislation with international labour standards, implementation and enforcement remain weak.

There are ongoing calls, such as those from the Cameroon Human Rights Commission, CHRC, to prioritise social dialogue to improve working conditions.

In its formal statement to mark the day, the CHRC welcomed the Labour Day theme, while stressing that structural deficiencies continue to undermine decent work across Cameroon.

The Commission drew particular attention to non-compliance by private sector employers, with Decree No. 2023/00338/PM of March 21, 2023; which sets the Guaranteed Inter-professional Minimum Wage at 60,000 FCFA. The CHRC warned that failure to honour the baseline wage directly erodes workers' rights to an adequate standard of living, access to healthcare, education for their children, and social security coverage.

There is the case of the Cameroon Development Corporation, CDC, which is owing its workers several months of wage arrears. 

Before the October 2025 presidential election, cheques were displayed on billboards as a sort of product advertisement, claiming to be money to pay the arrears. 

Some politicians even said if the poor workers did not vote for the CPDM candidate after receiving their arrears, they would be regarded as "thieves".   

Paradoxically, most of the workers were not paid and have still not had what is legally their entitlement from a company owned entirely by the State as they celebrated Labour Day.

There are even cases where council workers have not been paid for months, if not years like in Konye; where reports in the media hold that they have not earned their wages for 19 months!

However, various studies have indicated that the implementation of international and national regulations and institutions to protect workers’ rights in Cameroon has greatly ameliorated the working conditions of workers in the country. 

In spite of the regulations, Cameroonian workers’ rights are still being violated.

There is therefore the urgent need to carry out an investigation on the rights of workers; to be able to understand the challenges faced by the government in the respect, protection and fulfillment of workers' rights.

As the Labour Day theme puts the focus, decent work is at the heart of the concerns of the International Labour Organisation Agenda 2030 and the African Union Agenda 2063.

The Cameroon government aligns with the objectives and integrated them into two of the four pillars of its National Development Strategy 2020-2030, NDS30.

The first is the promotion of employment and economic integration, while the second anchors on the development of human capital and welfare.

Particular emphasis is laid on gender equality, which is reflected in the adoption in 2014 of the National Gender Policy, updated in 2018, which aims to reduce inequalities between men and women, particularly in terms of employment.

But in a labour market with complex and varied dynamics, influenced by economic, social and cultural factors, gender inequalities still persist to add to workers' problems in Cameroon.

This year's theme emphasises social dialogue and decent work as drivers of peace, national cohesion, and development. 

It should be a reminder to the government to ensure the practical implementation of all international and national labour legislations without politicising them as has been observed in some trade unions and the CDC, the largest employer after the government.