"Workers Have Nowhere To Turn To," ZCTU

Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) has said called upon the Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) to come up with a formula for reviewing workers’ salaries.

ZCTU secretary-general, Mr Japhet Moyo, told the Chronicle in an interview that workers’ salaries were not in sync with reality on the ground. Moyo said:

The cost of living is not just above the food basket, which has risen several times. There is transport, rentals, utilities and school fees and so on. Government has put in place a formula for fuel pricing in line with inflation trends and businesses can easily pass on the cost burden to the consumer, but workers have nowhere to turn to.

His remarks come when workers have been demanding that their salaries be increased as they have been constantly been eroded by the soaring inflation.

Recently, the government reviewed civil servants’ salaries by 76% which saw the lowest paid worker getting $1 023 from $582 a month.

Workers accepted the offer although they have argued that the money was not enough considering the high cost of living.

Prices of basic commodities have been going up when salaries remained stagnant.

ZCTU has earlier threatened to take it to the streets in protest of the paltry salaries which workers are getting. The labour organisation, however, shunned the demonstrations after consulting its stakeholders and also after receiving several threats from unknown people.

More: The Chronicle