In an interview with The Zimbabwean today, the ZDWU secretary general Justice Chinhema said 2000 workers were made jobless following the closure of the mining companies. “The government through the ministry of mines did not fully consult with the stakeholders especially the workers. We have 2000 workers who were made jobless and sent to the streets with no hope or assurance to be engaged by the new mining company,†he said.
“The government has not said a word in regard to how the employees will claim or going to be paid their benefits. As a union we are aware of the legal route of pursuing these outstanding payments, but, it should be known that some of these companies have closed offices running away to from its employees they terminated,†he explained. “This poses a question on how workers will get paid. We believe if government had consulted the workers’ bodies this would have been avoided,†commented Chinhema.
He emphasized that the new company, the Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company (ZCDC) should employ all the affected workers. “Preference should be given to those employees who had their contracts terminated and also consider local people with clean records,†said Chinhema. He said as a union they were strongly advocating the government to be transparent and ensure the interests of the locals first.
Post published in: Business