Govt plots retrenchments

Government has reportedly dispatched auditors to all State departments to identify all civil servants aged 50 years and above with a view to sending them on early retirement as part of efforts to contain its wage bill which currently takes up over 80% of its monthly budget.

The Zanu-PF administration has in the past few months struggled to pay its bloated civil service due to a shrinking tax base coupled by a massive drop in economic activity.

Government sources yesterday said that every State work-station "has an auditor" gathering information on employees.