By ALICE NACHILEMBE
Judicial and Allied Workers Union of Zambia (JAWU) has said that the voice of the trade unions has been weakened thereby making collective bargaining to suffer largely due to weak leadership of trade unions.
JUWU President Peter Mwale said that most of the leaders have fallen prey to the dictates of the government and are not able to represent the plight of the workers effectively.
Mr Mwale also condemned the harassments and intimidation of trade union officials and the members because of exercising their trade union and constitution rights.
He said workers have witnessed undue and unjustified transfers and intimidations from service commissioners.
Mr Mwale said undue victimizing of the workers is not welcome because it is reducing the morale of the workers and in turn leads to poor service delivery and low productivity.
He said that social dialogue is a key for it is one of the pillars of decent work agenda in linking employment with trade and economic policies.
“In order to ensure that the started responsibilities are performed we need strong and competent institutions from all key players,” he said.
Mr Mwale said the Minister of labour and security dose not demonstrate the competence to inspire workers interest at the moment.
He said corruption is not only in the Ministry of Labour but also in other government institutions.
Mr Mwale has encouraged employers who didn’t honor their employees to emulate companies which have awarded their employees to motivate workers.
And chef Government spokesperson Dollar Siliya has said that the country is moving to the middle income country where jobs dependence is from industries and manufacturing.
Ms Siliya said that the Government has a solutions that they can only employee a certain number and private sector has to grow to employ more people.
She said that the Government is encouraging a lot of people to become self-employed as business people or entrepreneurs.
“This why the president has retaliated that 20 percent of business must go to Zambian as part of empowerment that also Zambian should be entrepreneurs and also become employers.
“We want to see a time when Zambians are owing these mines but the problem is in our mind we are geared that only foreigners can invest in our country,” she said.
Ms Siliya has told workers to glorify entrepreneurship and self-employment as labour also so that many Zambian can be self-employed.
She said that the Government expect trade unions to provide polices and solutions that might be able to help government.
Ms Siliya said that the trade unions should work together with Government in providing possible solution on how to expand the economy of the country
She said that talking about worker conditions are bad will not help it a song that can be sung 12 years but what is been done to change it
