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4 clothing companies in red over ZRP debt

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FOUR companies that supplied fabric material to the Zimbabwe Republic Police are reportedly on the brink of collapse over outstanding dues estimated at more than $1 million.

FOUR companies that supplied fabric material to the Zimbabwe Republic Police (ZRP) are reportedly on the brink of collapse over outstanding dues estimated at more than $1 million. Christopher Mahove OWN CORRESPONDENT

National Union of the Clothing Industry secretary-general Joseph Tanyanyiwa recently wrote to Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) Japhet Moyo complaining over the issue.

He said James North Zimbabwe was owed $439 000, Throbs $234 482, Saybrook $48 000 and Diesel Gear $339 576.

Part of the letter reads: “When James North secured an order to supply uniforms to the ZRP, they on their own, did not have enough financial resources to service the order thus, they approached a local bank for financial assistance which they got, but once the goods were supplied, ZRP failed to honour its part of the bargain and this put management and workers on a collision course as management is now in the habit of staggering employees’ wages, which situation is wholly unacceptable.”

Tanyanyiwa said workers at the company were now threatening collective job action and the two parties had since gone for conciliation.

He said more than 80 Throbs employees who were retrenched by the company were now living in abject poverty because the company had hoped to fund the exercise using the money owed by the ZRP.

Tanyanyiwa added that Diesel Gear and Saybrookhad both cut workers’ working hours and were sometimes paying wages in instalments as a result of police’s failure to settle its debts.

Contacted for comment, police spokesperson Senior Assistant Commissioner Charity Charamba said: “Why do they think that reporting the issues to the media will solve anything.”

The Zimbabwe Clothing Manufacturers’ Association chairperson, Jeremy Youmans, was not picking up his mobile phone yesterday.