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Under the US$70 million scheme, affected employees will go home with an initial package of US$5 000 each, with the balance calculated according to a set formula and to be paid within the next few months.
RBZ Governor Dr Gideon Gono said the Ministry of Finance had advanced US$7,5 million to the central bank to meet the initial costs.
More will be raised from the sale of non-core assets
, which is underway. “What we have done is in compliance with the revised Reserve Bank Act. What we have done is to re-align the bank in line with the wishes of the legislature.
“The sad thing though is that this re-alignment is resulting in the loss of jobs,” said Dr Gono.
In March last year, Parliament passed legislation abolishing Treasury’s directive to the RBZ to engage in qua-si-fiscal activities of the past.
Over the last few years, RBZ had to engage in such non-core activities as farm mechanisation and parastatals and local authorities reform among others to fend off challenges bedevi-lling the economy at that time.
The central bank will remain with 493 workers from the initial 1 948. Of those affected, 964 are non-managerial staff, 232 contract workers and 259 managerial employees.
Of the total cost, US$30 million is for the retrenchment package while US$40 million will go to back, leave pay and other statutory payments.
Half of those affected had served the institution for between five and 15 years while a fifth of them had been with the RBZ for between 15 and 35 years.
About 15 percent had been under the RBZ employ for five years and below.
The retrenchments signify the cli-max of the realignment of the central bank to its traditional core business with organisational structures now in place to meet the brief.
Such departments as mechanisation, parastatals and local authorities’ reform and special projects have been closed while some of those that remain have been downsized.
The fate of senior managers such as deputy governors was not immediately clear yesterday.
The amended RBZ Act stipulates that there should be two deputy governors as opposed to the present three.
“Government is still seized with the matter of deciding who among the three (Mr Nicholas Ncube, Dr Charity Dhliwayo and Mr Edward Mashiringwane) goes or whether all three should go or whatever is decided.
“As you know, the appointment of the Governor and his deputies is the prerogative of His Excellency the President on the advice of the Minister of Finance,” said Dr Gono.-The Herald
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