SOLIDARITY Mine Workers Union of Zimbabwe (Somwuz) says RioZim Limited’s broader recovery and internal restructuring plan has begun bearing fruit as the giant mining firm has made notable progress in clearing current and former employees’ salary arrears.
RioZim, which is currently implementing a robust turnaround strategy, is showing signs of reviving its operations, following the revival of one the group’s gold assets, Renco Mine.
Combined with resumed activity across RioZim’s other operations, the mining concern seems to have turned a new leaf following years of decline which had severely affected workers.
In an interview yesterday, Somwuz vice president Bruce Chabikwa said RioZim’s current resurrection offers great promise and was immensely benefitting workers.
“We are seeing progress as Renco has resumed operations. At Cam & Motor, employees are now back at work and we are informed start-up preparations are visible - notably dewatering of the pit has started,” Chabikwa said.
“In terms of salaries, there is a commitment that was presented to employees and copied to us which of late has been fulfilled, thus covering even employees who had contracts terminated last year.
“In terms of health, the main Medical Aid has been back online for a longer period which is a good sign,” he added.
Based on progress achieved by RioZim so far, Chabikwa said workers were the biggest beneficiaries of the internal restructuring exercise.
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“Our collective position as Somwuz is that if adhered to -based on progress so far, the internal restructuring exercise is the right way to go.
“In terms of Corporate Rescue, we sat down with our members, and their stance is that they don't support this move, hence they are in support of internal restructuring hence we stand by that position,” he further said.
In terms of membership, Somwuz has the highest number of unionised employees at both Cam n Motor and Dalny Mine.
The revival of RioZim marks the end of a difficult phase where constrained liquidity, power outages, and operational interruptions forced the company into a holding pattern.
The timing of Renco’s reopening coincides with one of the most favourable gold market environments in recent memory.
On global markets, gold prices have traded above US$4,000 per ounce for much of 2025 breaking record highs.
