MINISTER of Labour and Social Security Fackson Shamenda has urged trade unions to ignore the recently amended retirement age at 65 years saying no agreement had been reached with the labour movement.
“The SI [statutory instrument] was wrongly signed, we have not agreed with the unions on retirement at 65 years anywhere,” Mr Shamenda said.
Opening the 14th Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) quadrennial congress yesterday, Mr Shamenda, however, said an informal meeting held with the labour movement agreed to an early retirement at 55, actual retirement at 60 and late retirement at 65 years.
He said the 65-year retirement age applies only to people contributing their benefits to the Public Service Pensions Fund (PSPF) and not those contributing to the National Pension Scheme Authority (NAPSA) and the Local Authorities Superannuation Fund LASF) as Government is still negotiating with the two pension houses.
Mr Shamenda also warned Hotel Intercontinental, which fired its striking workers, to reinstate them immediately failure to which Government will use its political muscle to intervene.
“While workers participate in the governance system of this country by ensuring that democracy takes root in society, those in power should not take workers for granted and begin to introduce measures that will hurt the workers.
Trade union leaders should always be alert and keep those with authority in check and fight for respect, dignity and general welfare of the workers,” he said.
Earlier, outgoing ZCTU president Leonard Hikaumba said the trade union movement is facing serious challenges in terms of human and workers’ rights violations and abuses by employers.
“Workers have paid a heavy price for their firm stand against all forms of violations and abuse from employers, be it in private or public sectors.
“While company owners and other bosses accumulate so much wealth, the workers who create it face a daily battle to keep their jobs and put food on the family table,” he said.
Mr Hikaumba also said that workers want a peaceful presidential election on January 20 next year
Someone explain to me, this has been signed into law and we should ignore the law, don’t know what to make of that, why not repealing it instead of making us break the law.
Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me.
That’s the question facing Zambians. These guys have been making and reversing decision. There was statutory instrument on fx regulations , now the fired nurse, retirement age and then the hotel workers. Who do they think they are fooling?
IGNORE this stup!d id!ot Fcukwell Shamenda!
Another PF clown that does not even know what he is talking about!
Big C.
Spot on. Why not simply repeal this law instead of urging people to break the law?
But then again this is Shamenda. IQ is not his strong point.
Please try to understand them. They have found themselves in a tight corner and are forced to make all these changes to please the masses who seem unhappy with PF right now. All these changes are meant to hoodwink the voters.
This called back peddling. A show of the confusion in PF. Scott agrees to retirement at 65. His minister says ignore it. Shamenda is this part of the campaign strategy? Am sure you were there when the retirement was discussed with Sata.
You guys better keep quiet. You are digging yourselves deeper into a hole.
These international investors are a scam,
Kagem Mining ltd in kitwe have been scamming the government since 2002; In every emerald auction held by the mine, the high quality stones are put aside and sold under the table to Indian buyers from the city of jaipur and the sale is not recorded; even when the company is having an auction outside Zambia, only 3.5 million dollars of emerald sales are recorded and taxed while another 7 million dollars worth of product is smuggled out of zambia illegally and the sales of these emeralds are not taxed or recorded in their books of accounts;
ask the directors responsible, Mr Govind Gupta and Mr Lewanika; all these illegal sales of stones have been going into their pokets
There is no government that works like this. PF are embarrassing. NA MINISTER TWAKWATA. NABA SHAMEENDA ATI NI BA MINISTER! What do you expect!
PF NEEDS TO GET IT’S HOUSE IN ORDER
WHAT RECONCILIATION ARE THE TALKING ABOUT WHEN THE MINISTERS CANNOT AGREE THAT THEY ARE PARTY TO THE RETIREMENT AGE OF 65
WE ALL KNOW THAT EVEN WHEN SATA WAS AROUND THE AGENDA WAS ON THE TABLE
GET YOUR HOUSE IN ORDER PF
VIVA STABILITY
VIVA HH
I don’t get this. The SI has already been signed therefore it is law. Is Shamenda advocating for breaching the law which he swore to uphold?
…Ignore Shamenda…….he has just managed to open the box to see the rot going on in the cabinet meetings….even if he is trying to capture the sympathy and support of the youth, there is a better way of counter reacting to a LAW……all he needed to say was that…’as govt we have heard the outcry of the people on retirement age, being a listening govt we shall ensure that we resubmit this legislation to parly for further debate with all stake holders in the hope of reversing it….’ as a cabinet minister worth the salt can not instruct the citizen to ignore a LAW…..
In any case , these jobs we’re going to people from two or three provinces so the rest of the Zambians were still excluded
@7 I disagree, with you which a de two o 3 provinces you mean. unless you havn’t 2 places or is yo’ province b’tween Zambia &DRC? If u vote 4 me I’ll reduce the gap b’tween de poor and de poorer so de rich b’come richer.
Look at the cabinet that wanted to impeach Guy Scot, 14 of them all from Muchinga , Northern and Luapula.
No Minister from NW. Two universities in one new province. And in any case why two provinces if you look a population the old Northern province had the same population as Southern.
A common joke at immigration is that if u are not from northern it’s had to get a job in Government . You probably not been discriminated against in Zambia so u don’t know how it feels
The one to fire is Dr Roland Msiska who wrongly advised Dr. Scott. Roland is on record of defending the 65 age limit. What kind of secretary to the cabinet is he if he cannot interpret what his cabinet wants? This is the same guy with Mwenye who dubiously got Edgar out of the Acting President position. Now he gets Guy Scott to sign something that was not even agreed by the Trade Unions and government.