News / National
Bonded jobless Zimbabwe nurses can sue the government
31 Jul 2011 at 06:29hrs | Views
LEGAL experts have described the failure by the Government to provide employment to thousands of bonded nurses as illegal.
This comes as the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare is continuing negotiations with the Ministry of Finance for the latter to unfreeze the recruitment of nurses, reports Zimpapers Online.
Speaking on the sidelines of a seminar on International Labour Standards in Nyanga last week, the legal experts said the Government's failure to address the plight of jobless nurses was in contravention of fundamental labour laws.
Labour law expert and University of Zimbabwe lecturer Mr Rodgers Matsikidze said by failing to employ the nurses, the Government was in breach of the Manpower Development Act.
He said if the Government does not have work for the graduates, there is no provision that they will remain under bonding to the State. In fact, Section 15 provides that those graduates can work for other employers and the State will then recover money used during their training through the employers.
Mr Matsikidze said the nurses could sue Government for breach of contract because it borders on discrimination that the Government is denying the nurses an opportunity to work yet the same situation is not being applied to other sectors where the State provides training at tertiary institutions.
Director of the International Labour Standards Department in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Dr Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, who was in the country to address the seminar, said the failure by Government to provide jobs to the nurses contravened two fundamental ILO conventions.
"There are two ILO conventions that deal with bonded labour and these are Conventions 29 and 105. Both these conventions are fundamental treaties and all ILO members are expected to ratify them," she said.
Labour Court president Mr Custom Kachambwa said Government was violating the nurses' right to work and put into practice their training.
Mr Kachambwa said the best solution was for Government to come up with alternative remedies.
Health and Child Welfare Deputy Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora last week told the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation that negotiations with the Ministry of Finance would yield positive results but added that not all the jobless nurses would get employment. He said the ministry was likely to fill just 950 posts, compared to the 1 700 jobless nurses.-The Sunday Mail
This comes as the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare is continuing negotiations with the Ministry of Finance for the latter to unfreeze the recruitment of nurses, reports Zimpapers Online.
Speaking on the sidelines of a seminar on International Labour Standards in Nyanga last week, the legal experts said the Government's failure to address the plight of jobless nurses was in contravention of fundamental labour laws.
Labour law expert and University of Zimbabwe lecturer Mr Rodgers Matsikidze said by failing to employ the nurses, the Government was in breach of the Manpower Development Act.
He said if the Government does not have work for the graduates, there is no provision that they will remain under bonding to the State. In fact, Section 15 provides that those graduates can work for other employers and the State will then recover money used during their training through the employers.
Mr Matsikidze said the nurses could sue Government for breach of contract because it borders on discrimination that the Government is denying the nurses an opportunity to work yet the same situation is not being applied to other sectors where the State provides training at tertiary institutions.
Director of the International Labour Standards Department in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) Dr Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, who was in the country to address the seminar, said the failure by Government to provide jobs to the nurses contravened two fundamental ILO conventions.
"There are two ILO conventions that deal with bonded labour and these are Conventions 29 and 105. Both these conventions are fundamental treaties and all ILO members are expected to ratify them," she said.
Labour Court president Mr Custom Kachambwa said Government was violating the nurses' right to work and put into practice their training.
Mr Kachambwa said the best solution was for Government to come up with alternative remedies.
Health and Child Welfare Deputy Minister Dr Douglas Mombeshora last week told the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation that negotiations with the Ministry of Finance would yield positive results but added that not all the jobless nurses would get employment. He said the ministry was likely to fill just 950 posts, compared to the 1 700 jobless nurses.-The Sunday Mail
Source - Zimpapers Online
