BULAWAYO Vendors and Traders Association (BVTA) has said it will fight for the rights of informal workers as the nation celebrated the International Workers’ Day on Monday.
Describing informal traders as playing a pivotal role in the country’s economy, BVTA said: “As BVTA, we remain committed to advocating for the rights of informal workers, including fair wages, decent working conditions, and access to social protections.”
BVTA said it celebrates men, women and children trying to eke out a living in the informal economy under punitive working conditions.
“We are aggrieved that it is common to work 10 to 16 hours a day in hazardous and unsafe spaces in the informal economy, there is lack of social security, lack of medical health schemes and poor infrastructure,” it said in a statement to mark the International Workers’ Day.
The association called upon the government, employers and society to recognise and value the contributions of informal workers and take tangible steps to improve their conditions.
“We commit to complement the government and partner the private sector to support informal workers with access to credit, capacity building and formalisation opportunities. Employers should also provide fair wages and safe working conditions, while society should appreciate and acknowledge the role of informal workers in the economy,” BVTA said.
“We implore the government and its various agencies to support informal economy workers to uphold equitable societal values, contributions and rights of all informal workers.”
Bulawayo has over 2 000 registered informal traders and thousands of illegal vendors.
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