EMPLOYERS and employees should take advantage of social dialogue to engage and avoid making decisions unilaterally, according to commercial and labour lawyer Caleb Mucheche (CM) who spoke to our business editor Mthandazo Nyoni (MN) during the Employers Confederation of Zimbabwe annual congress held in Kariba recently. Mucheche said during good times, employers should reward and pay their employees fair remuneration. When employers also face challenges, workers must understand their situation. Find below excerpts of the interview.
MN: What is the state of Zimbabwe's labour sector?
CM: The Zimbabwe labour sector is in a transition from COVID-19 and is trying to recover. Labour was not spared as you are aware that people are working from home, the issue of online work. So clearly our labour sector is in a state of transition, but it is quite commendable that some major gains have now been made in terms of recovery. We had experienced a serious stagnation during COVID-19, but at the moment things are showing signs of improvement.
MN: How do we compare with other countries in the region like South Africa Zambia?
CM: Zimbabwe is a developing country. Obviously, if one were to compare Zimbabwe with South Africa, the South African economy is in a better state of development than ours in terms of size. But alsoZimbabwe has got a lot of potential. What I can say is that the main challenge that our economy has been facing has been that issue of recovery, the issue of inflation and also the issue of foreign direct investment.
So, there's high hope that with new avenues for economic growth like the mining sector, for instance, the discovery of huge deposits of lithium, it is quite promising. If it is leveraged, it can actually develop our economy for the better. I must emphasize the issue of minerals as a natural resource. If it is used well, I think it can actually catapult our nation to better heights in terms of economic development.
MN: What major challenges are affecting the labour sector?
CM: Labour is being affected by collective bargaining issues, the issues of negotiations for better wages, better conditions of employment. Given the fact that at the time Covid-19 hit us, we were already grappling with other challenges like inflation. At the end of the day, we now have a scenario whereby employers are also trying to balance the issue of paying employees better salaries and better wages and benefits as well. But at the same time the very same employers are also in a situation where they want to grow the business, to grow the cake. If the cake is small, obviously there are challenges in terms of sharing it, but if the cake grows bigger, then it can be shared in a better way. But there are signs that the industry is trying to find its feet on the ground although at the end of the day, what we really need to do is to create more jobs. People want jobs.
- Young entrepreneur dreams big
- Chibuku NeShamwari holds onto ethos of culture
- Health talk: Be wary of measles, its a deadly disease
- Macheso, Dhewa inspired me: Chinembiri
Keep Reading
MN: Very interesting…
CM: I believe that if our focus as a nation can be job creation, it will go a long way and that job creation may require a conscious approach in terms of government can actually funding entrepreneurs to start new businesses, because nowadays its no longer the traditional way of doing things. There are some people with the potential, but they don't have the funding. I feel strongly that the government must do its part in terms of supporting those talented young entrepreneurs to create employment for our country. Jobs are not going to fall like manna from heaven. Jobs have to be created.
MN: The High Court recently terminated national employment councils. What impact will this have on the labour sector?
CM: It was actually a Labour Court judgment that resulted in interpretation of the new Section 56 of the Labour Act to the effect that when the old voluntary employment councils' legal provision was repealed, it also meant that the employment councils that existed under that legal provision have been repealed as well. That judgment is subject of an appeal process at the Supreme Court. So we can safely say that the issue is not yet finalised but the effect, if it is to be taken to this logical conclusion, is to paralyse collective bargaining. It will also create a state of stagnation and confusion because employment councils have got the quasi-judicial functions. They also have quasi-legislative functions, quasi-judicial in the sense that they decide labour disputes via conciliations, arbitrations, determinations, in some cases mediation as well.
They also have quasi-legislative functions in the sense that they come up with a code of conduct that actually applies to all sectors and industry. They also come up with collective bargain agreements which set minimum conditions of employment for the entire industry or sector. So, these employment councils are the heartbeat of labour. Anything that destabilises them, it actually destabilises the whole labour spectrum. The relevance of employment councils cannot be overemphasised.
MN: What should the government do to help the situation?
CM: We submit that government ought to intervene to ensure that the structures of employment councils are preserved and that can be done by way of transitional legal provisions to ensure that there's actually smooth transition or a shift from the voluntary employment councils, the new framework of employment councils, which the legislature is saying must be run like statutory employment councils. So, clearly the judgment has got some far reaching effects. We are not too sure of how the Supreme Court is going to decide.
MN: Are Zimbabwe’s labour laws pro or anti-business?
CM: It is very difficult to describe labour laws as anti-business or pro-business, the reason being that there are always competing interests between employers and employees. That is very normal. The basis or the rationale behind the law is to regulate those competing interests. And naturally, the government is a regulator that is supposed to come up with legislation that is meant to protect both employers and employees. Law must be neutral. Law must be consistent. Law must be uniform.
Law must be proportionate. Law must also be able to promote peace and tranquillity in society. What we have is a situation whereby people can comment from different angles or from the constituent they are coming from. Some may actually accuse our labour laws of being pro-business or pro-employers. Some may also accuse the same labour laws of being pro-employees or pro-workers. But at the end of the day that is not a new debate. It's quite healthy that obviously people can air their views about legislation. At the end of the day what is important is for law to promote fairness and justice.
MN: What should employers and employees do to improve their relations?
CM: What the parties must do is to take advantage of social dialogue to engage and avoid making decisions unilaterally, out of emotions. We know that there are some employers who may not have respect for law, but it is very important for employers and employees to be guided by fairness. At the end of the day, it's a relationship that is mutually beneficial. It is like a chicken and egg debate. Both employer and employee are equally important, but we encourage parties to have social dialogue. During good times, employers should reward and pay their employees fair remuneration. When employers also face challenges, employees must be able to understand that they are going through a difficult moment so that at the end of the day, you don't slay the goose that lays the golden eggs. What is important is for the relations to be balanced. It's not easy to strike that balance, but it is doable through engagement, through social dialogue, so that at the end of the day we can develop our nation. The most important resource in society are human beings. We can't do without human beings. That is why labour is not described as human capital. Machines require people to operate. So surely, we need to invest in our own people.
MN: What is the role of the government in all this?
CM: Government must come up with policies that encourage employers to grow their businesses so that they can actually create more employment because right now the heart cry for people, like some young people who have never been employed, is that can I just have a job? So clearly, the government must come up with conducive policies that promote economic growth and also promote job creation.
MN: Do you think artificial intelligence is a threat to the labour sector?
CM: The issue is that we still need human beings in the employment matrix, much as we may have these factors that are coming in, but at the end of the day, labour remains a vital cog in our society. We are not yet at that particular stage whereby human beings can be completely replaced, but obviously there's also a need for adapting to the new environment, new technology, and artificial intelligence because we should be able to understand and appreciate their role in the future. There's a need for research to ensure that we remain competitive. I must say that we must not be complacent; we must not be caught napping. We must always be moving with the times. Things are evolving. There are a lot of changes that are taking place.
MN: Zimbabwe is suffering a serious brain drain. What do you think should be done to make our people work in the country?
CM: Brain drain is a very unfortunate trend or scenario that is affecting our nation. But skills go where they are rewarded. That is a basic principle. So what we have to do to attract these skills is to ensure that we create favourable employment conditions. We create good decent jobs so that those people who would decide to go outside the country can weigh the options.
There's always a saying that home is best. But sometimes when home is really like you are on a bed of thorns, one can actually opt to say let me just stay outside. It's rather better if I stay outside. We need to create a conducive environment for skills to be rewarded. We need to know that those countries that are attracting or luring our skilled labour force are doing so because of creating a conducive work environment.
And if we can do the same when someone weighs, they can actually realise that I'm better off in my own home talking my only language, interacting with my own people and not everyone likes being outside the country in reality. Those foreigners want our skills, but they may not want us when we are no longer active in terms of the labour force. But it's not a solution that will happen overnight. Every one of us has a role to play to make Zimbabwe a better country.
