OVER 1,000 miners at China Non-Ferrous Corporation Africa (NFCA) Mining Plc in Chambishi and those from a contracted company JHCX Mining Construction Zambia Limited have been dismissed following the protests that have recently rocked the Chinese mining company.
This is according to separate memorandums dated October 19, 2011 signed by NFCA chief executive officer Wang Chunlai and his JCHX Mining Construction Zambia Limited counterpart Zhang Jun, made available to the Zambia Daily Mail yesterday.
The memorandum reads: “Following a memo issued yesterday [Tuesday October 18, 2011], asking you to report for work today the 19th October 2011 [yesterday] and [sic] you subsequently refused to observe. You are now all summarily dismissed with immediate effect. However you have a right to appeal within 48 hours. Your leave days accrued will be paid to you by the month-end of November 2011.”
NFC Africa Mining Plc Manager for Corporate Affairs Nelson Jilowa confirmed the dismissal of over 1,000 workers out of the 3,000 miners engaged at the Chinese mining giant.
“I can confirm that there is a memo and over 1,000 out of a total of 3,000 workers are affected,” Mr Jilowa said.
[Zambia Daily Mail]
Some one really needs to get down to the bottom of these strikes at Chinese mines. The MMD government set a bad precedent and if the Chinese can not stop their culture of abuse, someone should be brave enough to tell them to leave the country. The duty of government if first and foremost to its citizens, not foreigners.
Silly miners..they thought its easy to bring politics into private sector? Now lete see what pc will do for them…
Please let us be responsible in our comments. These miners are people with families, its not fair to call them silly. Its true that MMD gave too much to these foreigners but we also have to look into what is attainable in these Companies. If the company is making the money why pay the workers less. However, the companies are also there to make profit so they will not pay out of their pockets to sustain the citizens. It is therefore reasonable to sit down and discuss to strike a balance. Labour issues need to be addressed urgently by the new government before we go into crisis of non productivity which will make things even worse for all Zambians including the government. God bless mother Zambia.
The remaining workers should down tools in support of the others that have been fired
Then the mine will have no choice but to take them back. The chon choli cho can sale the mine to other investors if they want after all copper is in demand now.
Easy for you to say cominf from Australia
The entire workforce thinks they deserve a pay rise. These are the ripple effects of promising people paradise. Fire them, the rest will learn to wait.
WHAT DO THE LABOUR LAWS SAY ABOUT STRIKE REMAINING UNRESOLVED FOR A GIVEN PERIOD?
WHY DID THEY MAKE A FAKE K2m PROMISE?
HOW WERE THEY KEEPING ON PAYING HUGE SUMS TO RB?
WHY DID THEY MOVE SOME WORKERS FROM NFCA TO JHCX WITHOUT PAYING THEIR DUE?
HOPE THEIR MOVE IS WELL CALCULATED,OTHERWISE MANY INVESTORS eg TAIWANESE,ANGLO AMERICAN WANT THAT MINE.
I’m Waiting to see how PF will hand the situation. Cause if the strike is legal then no employee has the right to wake up one day and fire everyone. U have to pass your first test ba PF.
And #2 peter zuze & @4Vigil.. are you guys Zambians or mwenyes from chipata because what you are saying does not make sense!!
We all know that chines don’t treat Zambians well. Firing them is being irresponsible. Why can’t those mine employers meet the demands of those workers? Some useless Zambians maybe t pushing them (Chines)as a show to pf. Let’s see what pf does about this evil.
Just a joke, will fire the Chinese if these workers are not given back the jobs. Zambia and the minerals you followed all the way from China belong to these workers, if you are not happy then leave.
Most chinese are very cheecky
This is a business decision Bane. No politics here
I wonder how I survived living with these *****s for 6 long years…I wish every Zambian had gone through that to understand what type of human being the Chinese are. A person who knows these people would think twice before letting them into the country
people are taking everything for a ride…good move…discipline is needed…business is business…fire them…
People wont eat pf or mmd or upnd they need jobs.what if they are getting fired?what are unions saying?We seem to have bad leaders everywhere.Abantu balebepwa chilabushiku!Apeal and get your job back!GOD BLESS ZAMBIA.
Where are we going???????
Good move. Let Wynter Kabimba employ them.
Yes! Good move, chinese, business is business. Lets see what the people who promised them heaven will do!
This is now reality. The real world. You can not down tools to force a company to increase your pay. Thats why there is an illegal strike and a lawful strike. Management said they never agreed to the K2m increament but government announced it. If NFCA does employ 3,000 emlpoys as they say it means an increase in the wage bill of K6 billion each month ($1.2m). It’s just not possible no matter what government says. Businesses are there to make a profit if they are going to operate to pay salaries they might as well close. Those workers should reach a compromise a win win for both the coy and employees.
Business is busines. If you go on an illegal strike, you should know that you can be summarily fired – whether it’s PF or MMD in government.
You can condem these miners, but understand how it feels like to earn just K500,000 when them chinese live like in paradise in the country which is not theirs.
iwe iwe #3 pa zed.think my friend.that is useless.the problem with you is that you have never lived with miners.how can u encourage work stoppage in a company and the you want to be rewarded 2m at the end of the month.be real boi.ba miner bama tufyana nga suziba
My advice to Kabimba——– PF`s enemy is not HH. Its the promises PF made to the people.
PF prescribed its own poison by making wild promises to the people, especially on the issue of job creation. When people realize that PF actually has no capability to create meaningful jobs, PF`s popularity will be pricked in a big time.
Let the Cobra sort this one himself.
My advice to Kabimba——– PF`s enemy is not HH. Its the promises PF made to the people.
PF prescribed its own poison by making wild promises to the people, especially on the issue of job creation. When people realize that PF actually has no capability to create meaningful jobs, PF`s popularity will be pricked big time.
Dull pipo think like #16 and #22.You dont know what these miners go though at the mines.If these so called investers dont have cash to cater for their workforce they better leave .these chinese are naturaly mean my friend.Twilabapela ulutampulo.
Kabimba should now employ them.He is the archiect and his president of the current labour empasse Zambia is experiencing.They promised people mountains and hill.
Iwe Munzi @20
I have said this before mines sale their products on the world market meaning their profit margins are similar regardless of where the mine is located in the world. In Australia a mine worker laborer gets an average of K60million per month compare that to a 2million that they are asking for. Come-on guys stop supporting the exploitation of people. Mines make a lot of profit and they should pay there employees accordingly.
This is *****ic. Do you know how many people are employed per tonne of metal produced in Australia? Australian companies are shipping tens of millions of tonnes of iron ore and coal per MONTH. They are highly mechanised and employ very few people. The level of productivity in Zambian mines is hopeless. The true measure of productivity is tonnes of copper produced per miner. If you try to figure out that statistic, you will find that Zambians are loafers.
Pa zed, mwana u r dreaming if u think u can compare Oz to zed. the cost of living is different. does a miner in zed have hefty car insurance, a mortgage etc atase
They had it coming. Next in line are civil servants – they have become crafty, corrupt, lazy, unproductive and unprofessional.
Shame to all of you supporting the Chines and cursed be the day you were born in Zambia, these chines fool live like queens and kings on our own copper and you fool thinks its wrong to ask for what belongs to us, mwaba ifitole bafikala.
Pa Zed, Yes mines sale their products in international market. I agree that miners in Zambia should get more pay but we need to put the cost of getting that mineral out. Zambia is not expensive in terms of salaries but other costs which include transportation. In this regards our beautiful country is twice as expensive as OZ. Secondly look at the copper deposit grade. in Zambia is averages about 5% which is way lower when compared to OZ deposits. put it in perspective for every 1 ton rock, in Zambia you get about 50kg of pure grade copper while in OZ you get an average of 200kg. suppose the price of electricity consumption and prices are the same in the 2 counties, the company in Zambia is still at a disadvantage when you do a price distribution based on out put. consider these factors pl
You are lying – there no high grade copper deposits in Australia. Countries which beat Zambia at copper production are in South America – Chile and Peru – and their ore grades are much lower than Zambia. However, they are very high volume, very high efficient operations. It is only Lumwana Mine which is close to that approach in mining. But even Lumwana is only producing 140,000tpa. Olympic Dam in Australia has complex mineralogy and produces copper, gold and uranium and it is among the top 4 in the world in each category. We have no such mine in Zambia. You Kaponya get an education, instead of listening to SATAn.
Are these not the same characters people were saying their salaries had been increased by 80% a few days after the elections?
it was an illegal strike. so they got what they deserved.
Hey. Have you heard? Why dont you take note? the Kwacha is plummeting on the world market.
@ 33 Yes its plummenting very fast, 1000 new cadres to employed by PF, zambians you were warned!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
If they are casuals, then no problem, IT IS THEN TIME FOR THE COMPANIES TO SET UP PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT STRUCTURES, MIN of Labour will have to closely review these new contracts based on the new minimum wage!!!!
If they are casuals, then no problem, IT IS THEN TIME FOR THE COMPANIES TO SET UP PERMANENT EMPLOYMENT STRUCTURES, MIN of Labor will have to closely review these new contracts based on the new minimum wage!!
:((\:d/ Nkani yalula… more jobs r being lost than created…
A lot of jobs will disappear in these 90 days. Companies will downsize to accommodate only the number of people they can pay well. When the labour market stabilises, then we can create permanent jobs by 2016. So ladies and gentlemen, let us get led for tougher times ahead. Supporting a political party is voluntary work.
No 26 Which mine in Australia employes 3000 people? You can sale copper at the same price, the question is do you produce it at the same price in Oz and Zambia?
I have posted alot on this blog and warned of the tsunami coming to Zambia….
LME copper price long term US$5500.
KCM and Mopani break-even cost are US$6000
So those who have eyes to read and ears to hear hope you will run to high ground when the tsunami hits ashore….
Good luck Bane
Thats private business not PF Business,you have done well to fire them we don’t want indiscipline from pf cadres anymore. Rubbish
yes, fire them so that they go crying to state house to report to their guardian who won’t even know how many they are because he can’t count beyond 5.
@39
What you are saying is the efficiency of production of copper. Australian mines are cost effective and efficient. Zambian mines are high cost. Increase costs by doubling salaries and sure as SATAnic hell, mines will close. PFooters will be creating unemployment – they have started with first 1,000 miners.
I saw an earlier *****ic statement about Anglo American wanting to come back to Zambia. You keep dreaming fellas – Anglo walked away from KCM despite having put in $400m. Why should they return now under a Kaponya regime for high cost, short life mining assets? They have already put their $billions in Chilean copper assets. You wanna dream, then dream on!
@30
You are lying – there are no high grade copper deposits in Australia. Countries which beat Zambia at copper production are in South America – Chile and Peru – and their ore grades are much lower than Zambia. However, they are very high volume, very high efficient operations. It is only Lumwana Mine which is close to that approach in mining in Zambia. But even Lumwana is only producing 140,000tpa. South American copper mines easily produce double or triple this figure per annum. Olympic Dam in Australia has complex mineralogy and produces copper, gold and uranium and it is among the top 4 producers in the world in each of these metal category. We have no such mine in Zambia. You Kaponya should get a proper education, instead of listening to SATAn.
This is the first test of PF Govt.
They think governance is by decree and theories,
They have a feeling that governance is about directing things – even without Plan.
They fell you just say, “Let the economy grow, and let everyone have a job in 90 days” and it happens!!!!!
There is a real worker, a real employer, and a real strike, not theory.
These demand a real resolution and not a political campaign.
How we move from here will determine how far we go.
When a baby pups in non-disposable nappies, you dont throw the baby and the dirty nappies but clean both becase the nappies too are needed for the baby’s sake.
Consider the worker, a baby, and the Chinese employer, a nappy. How will PF clean both – will they throw away the Chinese employer to save the baby??????
mulelembako utwipi for easy reading, didnt you do summary at school?
We need some form of profit sharing, now that metal prices are buoyant. A formula should be worked out, whereby the state gets a share of the windfall from the high metal prices, the workers get a share, and the owner of the mines get the lion’s share. This profit sharing bonus can be named a “ONCE FOR ALL BONUS”, as they do on the sugar plantations of Trinidad and Guyana. Such a nomenclature, results in no bonus being paid should th
We need some form of profit sharing, now that metal prices are buoyant. A formula should be worked out, whereby the state gets a share of the windfall from the high metal prices, the workers get a share, and the owner of the mines get the lion’s share. This profit sharing bonus can be named a “ONCE FOR ALL BONUS”, as they do on the sugar plantations of Trinidad and Guyana. Such a nomenclature, results in no bonus being paid should the metal price
We need some form of profit sharing, now that metal prices are buoyant. A formula should be worked out, whereby the state gets a share of the windfall from the high metal prices, the workers get a share, and the owner of the mines get the lion’s share. This profit sharing bonus can be named a “ONCE FOR ALL BONUS”, as they do on the sugar plantations of Trinidad and Guyana. Such a nomenclature, results in no bonus being paid should the metal price collapse. AFTER ALL, THE RESOURCES BELONG TO THE PEOPLE….THEY NEED A SHARE OF THE PROFIT?? Workers in Indonesia, Chile and Peru strike on a regular basis…to improve their conditions of service, AND THEY SUCCEED. VIVA BASHI MINE!!!!!!
Zavuta PF keep your promises we are waiting
It’s all about the legal framework under which the Chinese companies executed the order. Unfortunately, these are the realities of life; politicians pander to their electorate to the extent that they will lie through their teeth but private firms always look at the bottom line. After all, private firms are not in the business of mining for atruistic reasons, but to make a profit.
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