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Some of the job seekers revealed that they once worked for the company before they were retrenched in 2009 while others said they were merely trying their luck.
Women were the majority of the job seekers with some coming from as far as Emganwini, Nketa, Nkulumane, Magwegwe, Pumula, Pelandaba and Mabutweni.
In an interview, United Refineries Limited chief executive officer Mr Busisa Moyo said they needed support from the community as there was work to be done.
He said they were only going to take contract workers for about two months.
“We are also in the agro-packaging business so usually around this time of the year, there will be lots of work to be done as soya beans and cotton will be ready for the market. We sent messages through word of mouth but we are overwhelmed by the response from the people,” said Mr Moyo.
He said already they had about 180 workers and as such they were probably going to take 100 more to complement those who were already in their books depending on the amount of work at hand.
In a separate interview, a job seeker Mrs Sandra Chitemerere said she once worked for another company, but lost her job when it closed shop.
“Things are really tough for us so I cannot just sit because my children will starve. I am just trying my luck here and hopefully the little I will get will go a long way,” said Mrs Chitemerere.
Another job seeker, Mr Phineas Mutanda, said he once worked for the company before being retrenched in 2009.
“I used to work here before things got worse leading to our retrenchment in 2009,” he said.
More than 80 companies closed down or relocated from Bulawayo to other cities and more than 20 000 were left jobless in the city.
Many companies in the city are also on the brink of closure and there is urgent need to help the companies survive.
The delay in disbursing the $40 million Distressed Industries and Marginalised Areas Fund is worsening the situation for Bulawayo companies meaning that there are no prospects of getting employment soon for the city’s residents.
Online Reporter