Minister called in to resolve Dunlop labour deadlock

Chronicle Reporter
THE industrial action at Dunlop Zimbabwe has been referred to Labour and Social Welfare Minister Paurina Mpariwa after workers and management failed to reach an agreement at a meeting called by provincial labour officials on Thursday.Workers who spoke to Chronicle on condition of anonymity said Minister Mpariwa will now issue a disposal order in terms of the Labour Act.
“Management on Tuesday gave us one day to sign an agreement ending the strike. They threatened to fire anyone who did not sign. They have since backed down. Dunlop and the workers were called in for a meeting by the ministry following management’s show cause order requesting that we return to work.

“In the meeting, after presenting our case and Dunlop presenting their case, an agreement could not be reached.
“The minutes of the meeting have since been sent to the Minister and it is up to her to resolve the matter through a disposal order that will determine the fate of the issue,” said a worker.

Another worker said the strike would continue since it was hitting management more than the workers.
“The company’s local sales were between $1,5 million and $2 million every month while monthly exports amounted to about $800 000.

“Management has to start negotiating with us for the benefit of everyone. Conservative estimates show that the company makes in excess of $100 000 a day. For local sales, an estimated $75 000 is made while $30 000 is generated from the export market,” said a worker.

The worker said all the money that they were sweating to make for the company was benefiting a few top managers.
“Now that we have entered day five, about $500 000 has been lost due to lack of production. We have been loyal and have not been benefitting and all we are demanding is that we receive a pay rise,” a worker said.

The company’s managing director Mr Kennedy Mandevani could not be reached for comment as he was not answering his mobile phone.
However, Dunlop human resources manager Mr Mkhwananzi declined to comment.

“We still have no comment, why do you want to write about us, leave us alone. Look for other stories in the rural areas. We have nothing to say,” he said.

The workers began their protest on 12 July after alleging that they had not received salary increments since 2009.
The industrial action comes at a time when the tyre manufacturer increased its capacity utilisation to close to 50 percent which is sustained by an increased demand of its tyres on the export market.