Tinashe Sambiri|The MDC Alliance has challenged the Zanu PF regime to pay workers decent wages.

In it’s May Day statement, the MDC Alliance accused the Zanu PF regime of abusing workers as the majority are earning meagre wages.

Read statement below:

MAY DAY ADDRESS FROM THE MDC ALLIANCE LABOUR AND SOCIAL SECURITY PORTFOLIO.

Comrades and friends ,Ladies and Gentleman we kindly appreciate and salute you on this very important day,a day to recognise and appreciate the hard work and resilience workers have shown under a terrible pandemic and work related difficulties that they face at the workplace and in Zimbabwe a rogue govt that has incessantly violated worker rights with impunity.

A gvt that has been on the ILO agenda for worker violation of rights for more than 10 years,a gvt that has been compared with countries like Sudan and Burma when it comes to worker rights violations.

This year’s May Day is unique because we are celebrating it under a pandemic ,with workers working under the Corona pandemic
,with those that still have jobs working with:
-inadequate personal protection equipment(PPE)
-inadequate medical cover
-poor salaries with inflation eroding their meagre salaries everyday
-policy inconsistencies from gvt on the economy
-with worker rights being violated every day and workers being refused the right to express themselves through demonstrations and strikes.

We are celebrating Workers Day when corruption and mismanagement of resources is the order of the day, with unemployment standing at around 98% and no effort being made to address the situation.We celebrate this day when the court where issues that affect the economy and issues that affect the workers theTNF is in limbo and nothing of benefit coming out of that forum.

We celebrate when our roads and highways are full of potholes. We celebrate when our dear civil servants are reeling under poor RTGs wages and salaries. We celebrate when in particular our frontline workers teachers and nurses are terribly underpaid .

We aptly endorse the theme for this year’s May Day by the ZCTU which calls for the fight for political, economic and social justice.

Shinga Mushandi Shinga!!
Qina Sisenzi qina!

Gideon Shoko
Secretary for Labour
MDC Alliance