About 1,300 workers at the Chinese run Anjin firm embarked on a two day strike over low pay. But Munyaradzi Machacha, a director at Anjin, told the Reuters news agency this weekend that the workers will be given a 25% increase, ending the industrial action.
One of the workers was last week was quoted as saying that they only receive between US$188 and US$266 per month. That worker, who refused to be named, also reportedly said that the Chinese managers at Anjin “randomly beat up people at work for no reason.”
This was the second time in recent months that staff at the mine downed tools, and last December about 600 workers embarked on strike action for the same reasons.
Anjin, which is a joint venture between the Chinese and the Zimbabwe state run Mining and Development Corporation (ZMDC), has faced criticism before for how its treats its workers. It has also been condemned for the forced removal of hundreds of Marange villagers, to make way for diamond mining activities, without paying them compensation.
The company’s Muchacha meanwhile said the strike last week was focused on salaries and made no reference to concerns raised about working conditions. –SW Radio Africa News
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