admindispute against the bank over their packages.
The former employees want Government to issue them with a certificate of no settlement after the RBZ failed to pay off their outstanding retrenchment packages at the agreed time.
The former workers are accusing the bank of breaching the agreed retrenchment package payment plan and they want a private arbitrator to handle the matter.
The central bank had requested to stagger the packages in two batches on March 31 and June 30 this year.
However, the former workers have only been paid US$15 000 across the board.
It is understood that the packages range between US$26 000 and US$250 000 depending on one’s grade and period of employment.
The retrenchees met recently and came up with a resolution to take the case back to the Ministry of Labour.
In a letter signed by retrenchees committee chairman Mr Webster Ngundu and committee member Mr Phanuel Muringayi to the provincial labour officer in Harare, the retrenches said the bank had breached the agreement.
“We regrettably advise that the bank has to date failed to communicate to us on these crucial outstanding issues, thereby undermining the retrenchees’ confidence in the conciliatory process.
“In view of the above unfavourable developments the retrenchees now request that the conciliatory review date that had been set for 18th July 2011, be brought forward to 8th July 2011.
“Should it not be possible to bring forward the meeting to the 8th of July, we alternatively request your office to issue us with a no settlement certificate and to allocate us a private arbitrator to handle this matter,” read the letter.
However, the conciliatory review meeting between the retrechees and RBZ representatives failed to meet on July 8 and the parties are now expected to meet today. The retrenchees said the latest development had been necessitated by the central bank’s reluctance to uphold the agreement.
The former workers referred to a meeting held on June 23 this year between representatives of the RBZ, retrenchees and the provincial labour officer.
They said the bank representatives had argued that the bank would pay all outstanding amounts by June 30 which the bank has failed to do.
The former employees argued that the central bank had failed to provide them a point person who they would liaise with on all outstanding retrenchment package matters.
The bank had also failed to provide a breakdown of each individual retrenchee’s net worth as at 30 June, 2011.
They also wanted the bank to provide information relating to change of ownership of vehicles and laptops, to provide information on outstanding pension remittances for the period March 2009 to July 31 2011.
The bank was also expected to provide information on when fuel coupons relating to the three months notice period would be issued to the concerned retrenchees.
The retrenchees also wanted the bank to provide information relating to the level of compensation to be given to the retrenchees who were entitled to vehicles but had not been allocated them upon leaving the bank.
They also dismissed recent media reports claiming that they had been paid their packages in full. In a statement, Mr Ngundu said the article was misleading and caused problems.
“To the lay reader, the article would seem to imply that the 2011 RBZ retrenchees have been paid all their outstanding dues, when in actual fact, this is not the case.
“As a result of the seemingly slanderous article, there has been significant acrimonious friction between the retrenchees and their spouses, families, creditors and other stakeholders with regards to the correct status of retrenchment package payments,” he said.
The central bank retrenched 1 455 workers early this year while another 530 are expected to leave the bank.
Online Reporter