Workers in Zimbabwe applaud govt over new retrenchment regulations

Workers in Zimbabwe have welcomed the government's recent overhaul of retrenchment regulations, hailing it as a progressive step towards better protection for employees amid the nation's economic challenges. While expressing satisfaction with the new rules, workers have also urged the government to continue reviewing minimum wages to ensure workers receive dignified pay in the face of rising inflation.

The new regulations mandate that workers be paid one month's salary for every year of service, a significant improvement over the previous law, which stipulated only one month's salary for every two years worked. This change has been met with applause from various labor unions.

Obert Musaraure, leader of the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, described the revised regulations as a major improvement. "We welcome the new law mandating companies to pay a monthly salary for every year served. This is a big improvement from the previous provision of a monthly salary for every two years served," he said.

Musaraure also emphasized that pensioners in the country were living in extreme poverty and suggested that the new law could provide pensioners with more decent exit packages. He further advocated for mandatory share ownership in mining companies, urging the government to ensure that workers in the sector benefit from the country's mineral wealth.

Justice Chinhema, General Secretary of the Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union, called for more progressive labor laws that recognize workers' contributions. He said, "This new minimum retrenchment package is a painkiller we all wanted. Now we are fighting to end the issue of short fixed contracts when permanent jobs are available." Chinhema added that the new law offered workers hope, showing that the government was taking positive steps in favor of employees.

Chinhema also stressed the need for laws that protect contract workers from unfair termination and ensure they receive proper retrenchment packages. "We need a law that also protects contract workers from unfair termination without retrenchment packages," he said.

Labour lawyer Caleb Mucheche explained that the new retrenchment law includes provisions that balance the interests of both employers and employees. "The act gives an employer who proves financial incapacity to pay the minimum wage retrenchment package leeway to apply to an employment council for exemption from paying the total minimum retrenchment package and be allowed to pay part of the minimum," Mucheche said.

He clarified that employers who apply for exemptions cannot pay less than 25% of the total minimum package, ensuring that workers are still entitled to a significant portion of their entitlements.

The changes in the retrenchment laws are seen as an encouraging development for Zimbabwean workers, offering improved protection and benefits during difficult economic times. However, many unions are calling for continued improvements in worker protection, particularly in sectors such as mining and contract employment.