BY SILAS NKALA/OBERT SIAMILUNDU
THE mining sector in the country has been rocked by labour disputes including company disciplinary cases, while others were heard at the National Employment Council, Labour Court, High Court and Labour ministry.
This was revealed by the Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union (ZDAMWU) secretary-general Justice Chinhema on Saturday in a report directed to union members.
Chinhema said out of the 79 labour disputes, his union managed to assist members to win 17 critical cases, while 62 other cases are still pending.
“The union remains vigilant and ready to defend any of our members facing disciplinary charges. The union is also ready to represent members with any work-related grievances as individuals or groups. We are proud to mention that in the recent past, ZDAMWU has won very critical cases,” Chinhema said.
“We are, therefore, urging members with grievances to contact the union. Equally, no ZDAMWU member should go into a hearing without representation,” he said.
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He urged members to avoid unnecessary cases of misconduct, adding that theft would never be tolerated and that those that supervise others must ensure safety rules are adhered to all the time. Chinhema said the union was also seized with various cases pending in different courts which they would continue to push to finality.
“The current system is prejudicing workers because they are mostly the affected part. Our members become frustrated and agitated when they bring cases and it takes years to resolve.”
Chinhema said the 62 pending cases were before NEC, the Labour Court, High Court and Labour ministry, with some to do with underpayment of workers backdating to 2016.
Among the mining firms embroiled in disputes is the Chinese-owned Ming-Chang Sino Africa that faces unlawful dismissal and underpayment of wages.
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