Hope for Africa International (HAI) has appealed to striking nurses to resume work.
HAI Spokesperson Pastor Clergy Chombela says striking nurses need to return to work to avoid the needless loss of lives.
Pastor Chombela, in a statement released to ZANIS in Lusaka today, appealed to nurses to go back to work as their profession demanded a measure of selfless service and sacrifice.
He said further dialogue should be going on whilst nurses are working in line with the labour laws.
Pastor Chombela, however, advised government to urgently address the grievances of health workers.
He said there was need for government to look into the plight of health workers and ensure that their demands are receiving active attention.
Pastor Chombela said his organization was gravely concerned with the continued strike action by health workers.
Meanwhile, Pastor Chombela has called on the Church, Civil Society and opposition political party leaders to show leadership on the matter by advising nurses and health workers to return to work.
He observed with sadness that the longer the nurses and health workers take to return to work, the more people would suffer due to lack of medical attention.
Most health workers and nurses in the country have been on strike for over a month demanding improved conditions of service, a move that has since prompted government to issue an ultimatum to the striking nurses to resume work by today or consider themselves dismissed.
ZANIS
With due respect to Pastor Chombela, you dont know what a Zambian nurse has gone through while these people fatten themselves with tax payers money. Nurses have relatives who have died before the strike actions started because they cannot afford to look after them. No medicine, no food, no proper homes. The meagre salaries they get cannot support their families or themselves. Working at night without even a cup of coffee. Please support the nurses ENOUGH IS ENOUGH – The government should address this now – it is not about politics. Mubanga
It is true that nurses should be sympathetic with the people so as to return to work, but it is also true that the government should sympathize with the nurses so as to give them what meets their needs.
The problem with Zambian employers (government and private companies) is that they come up with a salary based on a monthly food budget only as though we only work for food.
If it is their budget, it will include food, school fees, weekend tours, holidays, a saving that can buy a house after some time, etc. but if it comes to the common man its only food that can last at least for 30 days or less. Selfishness!!!!
A WAGE SCALE SEASLE HAS TO BE BALANCED AT LEAST EVEN BY A SMALL MAGINE.
Allow me to comment on the nurses strike. It is a pity that some people only look at one-side. If you are a regular visitor at most hospitals you will feel for the nurses. They have reduced themselves to selling nappies, plastic cups for babies, scones, talk time, etc. in wards to patients, just to keep going. Yet, these are the people who are supposed to look after patients with all the attention. With good working conditions and salaries they will be able to work without having mobile tuntembas at clinics and hospitals. How can they be respected. Florence Nightingale you compare them to or they would love to emulate was respected and honoured. Naturally in Zambia most people do not respect people peddling wares. This aside life is hard for them too! They go to the same shops to buy…
I wish as a nation, we could emulate our wage increment system as the USA i.e every year an employee comes up for evaluation and a wage increase according to the companys’ wage increment percentage. This is done for each individual employee on their annual anniversary depending on when they started to work for that company. This eliminates the cost of giving increments across the board. Also when the cost of living goes high, the wages are adjusted accordingly. Why does the Zed government have to wait for strikes to increase salaries?
Prepare for hard times ahead.
plead with the GRZ so that the address nurses problems. Its not the Nurses but GRZ tht on the wrong side.
If the Govt was truly concerned about the plight of the medical service in the country, they would stop their delay tactics and do something asap. RB & his cabinet of non-decision makers carry the responsibilty to avoid the loss of lives in this case, and not the nurses.
They hv resolved to start work
But the UNZA lecturers have decided to go on strike demanding an even higher %age.
Chombela wikalefye!
Awe bafwisheniko ama nurses bacula pafula! Especially those nurses working in government clinics/hospitals.Even if i’m wearing Steve wonder’s glasses in the dark night i would still be able to distinguish this poverty stricken nurses and their families from these egocentric well paid politicians and their families.Because poverty is written all over the face of nurses working in government.I was moved when i saw the nurses in their wrecked “nurses bus” the other day,they were squashed shoulder to shoulder like sardines.
#1, I concur with you.
Let me breakdown what an average nurse gets in Diaspora.
1, Afternoon shift allowance,
2, Nightshift allowance
3, Weekend allowance
4, Public holiday allowance(double pay)
5, 5 to 6 weeks annual leave (paid with leave loading)
6, $45 to $65 dollar an hour pay.
Overall $2000 and above take home pay (net pay)fortnightly. for a 4 days a week job, and then they have 3 days off per week to go and work elsewhere they wish for a good $65per hour on weekends.
What the heck is everyone talking about when these nurses are taking home ZMK 300 to 300 thousands?? (peanuts)- less than a hundred dollars a month.. people be realistic.
Ministers have sitting allowances and many crap allowances which benefit themselves and ask why they go to RSA for treatment? Ba…
#12 PLEASE!!!
Zambia is not Diaspora!
Yes, nurses in Zambia are underpaid, but Zambia cannot afford to pay the nurses your diaspora allowances and wages. Lets be reasonable and reach a reasonable settlement. For starters MPs’ and Ministers’ allowances must be reduced – they are highly exaggerated! Gratuity must be scraped, it has been misunderstood.
Kwaliba ishina ati Pastor CLERGY? Guys tulebako serious mwe!!!!!
Gvt please don´t solve the problems of Gvt workers like this. Help nurses so that, they can work with there hearts full of joy. Now even though resuming work with frustrations patients are the ones to suffer.
its just out of their own mercy that they resumed work..VIVA health workers…we salute you and love u!!
RB Gvt is this the way you be solving problems by threatening workers? Where are we going?
President RB talk to your people, Nurses are really in need of good salary. They need to have good diet so that there inmunities are well protected from the diseases. we need health Nurses. Please listern to their cry!