The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has threatened to boycott the Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) meetings next year, saying the body has failed to represent the interests of workers.
Efforts by unions to try and improve the welfare of workers in the country hit a brick wall as the government was not willing to pay a living wage or consider United States dollar salaries, NewsDay reported citing a 2022 end-of-year statement issued by president Florence Taruvinga on Friday. Taruvinga said:
Government has failed the Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF). The platform has not delivered to expectation and it is, therefore, our view that the TNF Act needs to be revisited for its decisions to be binding, not this arrangement where its decisions are subject to approval by Cabinet. We have already made it clear that come 2023, labour shall boycott TNF meetings if the other social partners continue to act in bad faith for selfish ends while sacrificing workers.
As you are aware, collective bargaining is our trump card as unions, but these have remained mere talk shows resulting in nothing. Our 2022 goal was for all workers to earn US dollar-denominated salaries and wages but the obtaining laws are militating against that. Our social partners are not negotiating in good faith at all negotiating platforms. For instance, to date, the government has not gazetted the recommended US$150 minimum wage for it to be effective. This clearly indicates a non–committal stance by government towards alleviating the plight of workers.
She said employers were exploiting that gap to pay low wages. Taruvinga added that employers are generally opting to pay allowances in forex while salaries remain fixed in local currency which means workers will have low pensions upon retirement, cannot access meaningful loans from banks, and afford medical and educational services.
She said many workers are living below the poverty datum line.