Labour Deputy Minister Simon Kachimba says Government will soon announce the new minimum wage which an employee is supposed to earn per month. Mr. Kachimba said Government wanted to see a situation where employers begin to appreciate their employees by giving them good wages and long term contracts.
Speaking when he conducted an inspection of Fun City company and Zambia Engineering and Construction Company Limited (ZECCO) in Lusaka on Thursday, the Deputy Minister warned that Government will not allow casualisation of labour in the country.
He said that Government wanted to encourage Zambianisation, a system where qualified Zambians take up management positions in companies. He noted that the country has qualified human resource to run companies adding that expatriates can only be used in areas where the country was lacking. He has also advised employers to consult his ministry on matters related to labour laws to avoid violating the law.
Meanwhile, Fun City Regional Director Aston Kaunda told the minister and his entourage that his company is now run by Zambians. Mr. Kaunda said disclosed that out of the 120 employees, 85 were unionised and that the lowest paid employee at his company was earning K1.5 million.
He said his company has responsibility to prove to the public that Zambianisation could work and commended the minister for making an inspection.
And an inspection at ZECCO reviewed that most employees were on short term contracts and were found working without protective clothing. Some employees found at the construction site complained to the minister that their wages were as low as K300, 000 per month.
Human Resources Officer Eslom Kamumema told the Minister that they will ensure that errors are corrected.
ZANIS
You already know that zambians are being abused thankyou for the inspection, now we need you to act and this should be done before any company stars operating
The usual rubbish talk, besides question is how will this be monitored with all this corruption pa zed.
This better be for real cos the Zambian civil servant has been getting peanuts for too long. That’s why their input is bad cos they are busy chasing money thru other ventures. Pay pipo what they are worth for once!
The national rate will be 50 cents over the dollar a day.
Then the government can say you are above the bread line.
Zambians should be asking for serious wages.
WEEKLY NOT MONTHLY.
Nonsense. Why everytime these useless politicians talk in future tense? They just talk just for the sake of talking.
Minimum wage should atleast be K3m considering>High fuel price
High electricity tarriff
High inflation rate
High bank loan intrest rates
Increased cost of food basket for a family of four.etc
This country is headed nowhere.We have a habit of following things blindly.Because UK has a minimum wage does not mean we should also have one.I dont advocate for this nonsense.Let each employer pay what makes economical sense to him or her.We should take advantage of cheap labour as it will push the production costs down.But who am i talking to any way the average Zambian is so lacking when it comes to enterprise that it is clear we are headed nowhere.Asking for a minimum wage when we are so impoverished is tantamount to insisting on a 5 course meal when you cant afford it.Let us grow the economy then start making these demands it is supposed to be so logical
How about setting the minimum wage for foreign corporations at 80% of the minimum wage in their home countries?
At least that way we’ll know they won’t be using Zambia as a sweatshop economy, where they go just to avoid paying their workers minimum wage back home.
Good move by the government. lets abolish casual jobs in companies that only look for cheap labor. Surely, How can one survive on K300,000?
However, cheap labor will always be there but if many jobs are fueled by cheap labor, where does our Zambian human resource comes in?
Came and start with the Mines, you will cry:((:((:((.Most of this contructors working for the mines and die are getting less than 400:o:o:o
Fya bufi fye ifi.
LT, what kind of journalism is this? no info on what ths Fun company is all about – what it does, where it’s located, who owns it (foreign owned?). And is ZECCO now foreign ownwd? Basics, basics. Period. You don’t need to go to UNZA to know that. Just go to Evelyn Hone and you’ll get the basics.
Let’s say, that if a minimum wage job in the US would be $5,- per hour, at 80% of their domestic minimum wage, that foreign company would have to pay a minimum of $4,- an hour. With an 8 hour day, that’s $32 per day, with a 5 day working week, that’s $160,- per week, and $640 per month.
Now if they did that, I would be in favour of foreign investors.
Bythe way howmany Zambians are in employment what is the percentege