adminForward Nyanyiwa Herald Correspondent
Government is set to reverse the decision taken by Mashonaland East provincial medical director, Dr Simukai Zizhou, to suspend a Collective Bilateral Agreement (CBA) that allowed nurses to have flexible working hours.
Health and Child Care Minister Dr Obadiah Moyo told The Herald on Sunday that he instructed Health and Child Care Permanent Secretary, Dr Agnes Mahomva to remind the Mashonaland East provincial medical director of the valid CBA agreement.
“That (suspension of flexible hours) was not supposed to have been made in the first place. It is against the CBA agreement and I have since instructed the permanent secretary to write to the PMD a letter reminding him of our commitment to the agreement.”
Dr Zizhou said nurses should not continue to allege incapacitation because by last week they had received their Covid-19 allowances.
The allowances are 55 percent of their salaries.
This is in addition to a bus that ferries them to work daily.
Zimbabwe Nurses Association (Zina) president, Mr Enoch Dongo described Dr Zizhou’s actions as unfortunate.
“The PMD has no mandate to remove the flexi hours. It is beyond his office because we discussed this with our employer in the CBA and it’s a legal document which he cannot cancel,” said Mr Dongo.
Mr Dongo said even Government as the employer could not cancel the arrangement since the nurses’ demands had not been met in full.
Dr Zizhou denied reports that he had unilaterally cancelled the CBA agreement but said nurses at Marondera Hospital were abusing it.
“I did not actually cancel the arrangement of flexi hours. What I only did was to try and avoid a bad situation that was going out of hand. The nurses were now abusing the arrangement such that you could find one senior nurse in a ward.
“We have since resolved the issue and their duties are now as per the CBA agreement. I stand guided by the parent ministry and starting this coming week, the nurses will continue to come at the agreed hours as per the bipartite agreement.”
Late last year, Government reached an agreement with nurses for them to work for two days a week to reduce their transport costs.
Online Reporter