Hwange Colliery boss resigns

Fairness Moyana in Hwange

HWANGE Colliery Company Limited (HCCL) has been hit by resignations by senior managerial staff with the recent one being that of the managing director, Mr Blake Mhatiwa.

In a company memo sent to workers on Friday, seen by this publication, HCCL said the position of managing director would remain vacant.

“Notice is hereby given of the resignation of Mr Blake Mhatiwa, from his position of Managing Director for Hwange Colliery Company Limited. Mr Mhatiwa has resigned with immediate effect. We wish him well in his future endeavours. The position of Managing Director will remain vacant. For now, the Business Improvement Programme (BIP) will continue under the guidance of the Administrator and in line with the Reconstruction Mandate,” read part of the memo.

In another memo last month, HCCL hinted of a possible retrenchment exercise casting a cloud of uncertainty among workforce. The company, which is under reconstruction intends to carry out the exercise through a three-pronged approach that entails termination on notice, dismissal and retrenchment.

Workers expressed anger at the stance taken by the company arguing that they had since engaged their unions for guidance.

“We are really disappointed with the way the company intends to handle issues. Taking away workers’ rights by saying the Labour Act does not apply is tantamount to infringing on the very rights prescribed in the Constitution,” said one worker who requested anonymity.

Workers committee secretary, Ms Gracious Sibanda said workers were frustrated with the developments. Ms Sibanda said they were greatly affected because their salaries were not coming on time and they could not even negotiate a salary increase.

“Workers have not received their October local currency salary component with the latest development casting further tension between employees and the company which has a history of not properly settling packages and benefits.”

Zimbabwe Diamond and Allied Minerals Workers Union (ZDAMWU) has reacted to the development urging the Colliery to rethink its position.

“We advise that with respect to workers rights you are wrong on that point of law. The reconstruction of State Indebted Entities Act Chapter 24:27 was promulgated in the year 2004.

The legislator in its wisdom realised the misstate of other laws and statutes intruding into labour matters and amended the Act in the year 2005 to address in particular the inconsistency created by parallel statutes.

“The memo that says the Labour Act does not apply to your employees was described by the Supreme Court as unsustainable at law because the Reconstruction Act is subservient to the Labour Act, whatever the provisions of the Reconstruction Act might be they cannot exclude the application of the Labour Act to any employee not expressly excluded by the Labour Act itself. Kindly therefore ask HCCL to retract the policy statement and be guided by the Labour Act itself if you are to dismiss or retrench workers,” read a letter by ZDAMWU secretary general, Mr Justice Chinhema to Colliery Administrator.

Efforts to get a comment from the company were fruitless.