Tongaat strike continues, sugar crisis looms

Tendai Mugabe in CHIREDZI
A serious sugar shortage is looming ahead of the festive holidays after Tongaat Hullett employees rejected a $10 pay increase offered by their employer and vowed to continue with their strike until the figure is reviewed to $300.

The workers who downed tools three weeks ago are earning $173.

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Since the beginning of the strike, the workers are spending day and night blocking the gates and not even the company’s management is allowed to enter.

The workers are arguing that the $173 is below what their colleagues in South Africa, Mozambique and Swaziland are earning.

As a result of the strike, about 480 000 tonnes of sugar are stuck at Tongaat Hulett’s Hippo Valley and Triangle sugar mills.

Further, several truck loads of sugarcane ready for milling are also locked outside the mill in Triangle while reports are that sugar worth thousands of dollars was left clogged in the mill when the strike started.

Zimbabwe Sugar Milling Industry Workers Union president, Mr Freedom Madungwe, yesterday said the strike was continuing.

He said a few days ago they agreed to the $10 as the minimum offer, but there was a stalemate after the company management said it was the maximum they could afford.

“Today (yesterday) our lawyer, Mr Paul Mangwana, has met with Public Works, Labour and Social Welfare (Deputy) Minister Tapiwa Matangaidze to resolve the matter,” he said.

“We have initially agreed to the $10 increment as the minimum offer, but the company is saying that is their maximum offer so that is the bone of contention now.

“We are willing to negotiate, but in the mean time we are saying the strike is continuing until we reach an agreement.”

Mr Madungwe said their company had the capacity to meet their demands, but the management was being arrogant.

Efforts to get a comment from the Tongaat Hulett management were fruitless as its managing director, Mr Sydney Mutsambiwa’s mobile number was not reachable.

Sugarcane farmers who spoke to The Herald here, called for a quick resolution of the impasse between Tongaat Hulett and its employees.

Chairman of Zimbabwe Sugarcane Development Association, Mr Edmore Veterai said: “About 872 farmers have been affected by this strike.

“We are not on the side of the company or the workers, but we are saying they should resolve this matter because it is not only affecting the employees, but even other downstream industries such as bottling companies and even the transport sector.

“The continuation of this strike may end up opening a floodgate for sugar imports and as farmers, we think the timing of the strike has affected us after toiling for 12 months working on the sugarcane.”

Another farmer Mr Godfrey Rusero said: “We are really affected as farmers and I think they should try to find each other and resolve this matter.

“Sugarcane is a labour intensive crop, which matures after 12 months and if it is not milled as is the case now, we incur serious losses.”

When The Herald visited the Tongaat Hulett mill in Triangle yesterday, hordes of workers were milling around the company premises while others were blocking the gates.

As of yesterday, some shops in Chiredzi had run out of sugar while other were not allowing people to buy more than 5kg.