Economy: Women bear the brunt

Companies in Bulawayo, Masvingo, Gweru and Mutare are reeling under harsh economic conditions, with a number of them having either closed down or relocated to other areas.

Women from affiliates of the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions who spoke to The Zimbabwean at the labour body’s commemoration of International Women’s Day last week said the sorry state of industries had affected women more than anyone else.

“Some companies have not paid their employees for several months and this is impacting heavily on women. I personally have gone for six months without being paid. Being a woman there are things like sanitary pads and bath soap which I cannot do without. I am also diabetic and I need money to buy medication,” said Grace Mangani, a member of the Amalgamated Railways Workers Union.

Her employer, the National Railways of Zimbabwe, has gone for almost eight months without paying its workers and recently wives of workers demonstrated at the company’s headquarters demanding their husbands’ pay.

Mangani said companies’ failure to pay workers was unsettling family unity. “I know of marriages that have broken down because husbands are not bringing money home. At times it is very difficult to believe that someone is not being paid when every day he or she goes to work. Some wives cannot stand that and they end up looking for men who can cater for their needs,” she said.

Clemencia Chaza from the Zimbabwe Catering and Hospitality Workers Union said a lot of women and children faced starvation because family breadwinners have not been paid. She blamed the current economic turmoil on bad government policies.

“We need a deliberate policy which promotes external investors who can bring in new equipment and technology to our factories. We also need to boost investor confidence and guarantee the security of their businesses,” said Chaza.