A random inspection in some companies in Lusaka has revealed that some employers have not complied with the new minimum wage which government effected in July this year.

And Labour Deputy Minister Ronald Chitotela has stressed that government will protect Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Zambia but will not take kindly investors who abrogate labour laws that include the revised minimum wage which was affected in July this year.

The Deputy Minister yesterday conducted an impromptu inspection on some multinational shopping malls, some wholesale, retail shops and restaurants in town and castigated proprietors who have not complied with government’s directive on wages.

Mr Chitotela visited two shops and a restaurant along Lumumba road which are owned by Indians where it was discovered that workers were still getting not more than K500, 000 as salary which is less than the revised minimum wages for shop keepers and caterers.

A shop keeper in Tikondane Enterprises Limited who is only identified as Danny told the Minister that their employer pays them K 500, 000 as salary while the shop owner who refused to give his details to the Minister and the news crew said all the workers are paid well.

The shop owner called Danny to testify to the Minister that all his friends were highly paid while the later disagreed stating that the only salary he knew of was only K500, 000 pay months.

When he discovered that the news crew was filming the discussion, the shop owner became emotional and begun to block the cameraperson.

While in Zeekomo Restaurant and shop, the proprietor who is reported to have been abusing his employees and paying them less than the minimum wage was reported to be out of the shop.

But the multinational shopping mall such as Shoprite and Spar Arcades has complied with minimum wage directive and some workers confirmed that they are happy with the new conditions of service.

The Minister secretly spoke to workers before their managers came and discovered that most workers are unionized while a few are on short contracts that run for two years.

Shoprite Manager Stefan Kranz said the shopping mall has no problem with the minimum wage and that all workers are given good contracts while a receptionist Molly Kayula told the ZANIS reporter that she is currently getting K1.3 million.

The Minister was happy with shoprite but directed that management should submit the salary schedule and slip to his ministry for proof.

The Minister also visited Sounds stores and Spar at Arcades shopping centre and echoed the same message.

The revised minimum wages have in the recent past sparked debate among employers and employees.

Statutory Instrument Number 45 of 2012 signed by the Minister of Labour, Fackson Shamenda, on July 4, 2012, states that the minimum wage for a person engaged as a general worker, cleaner, handyman, an office orderly, watch person or guard must be K700,000 per month or K3,646 per hour, while a person engaged as a driver must be paid K1,002,386 per month or K5,220 per hour and a Typists or receptionists must be paid not less than K1,085,919 per month or K5, 656 per hour.

And a qualified clerk is supposed to be paid not less than K1, 445,107 per month or K7, 527 per hour.

This means that no employee in Zambia under the categories mentioned should be employed on a salary of less than K700, 000.

Failure to comply with the statutory instrument which is law can attract an imprisonment of about 6 months in prison and a fine.

ZANIS

Finance Minister, Alexander Chikwanda has called for an effective public procurement system which is transparent in order to enhance economic growth and development.

Mr Chikwanda said yesterday when he launched the Standard Bidding Documents in Lusaka that public procurement was a critical component in the management of public resources.

Standard bidding documents, which were part of the on-going reforms in the public sector, were aimed at achieving optimum degree of order in the procurement process as well as reduce bureaucracy and tender processing time.

“It follows that an inefficient and bad procurement system can be a major impediment to growth and development especially that the acquisition of works, goods and services by the public sector have to go through such a system,” he said.

The minister who is chairperson of the Zambia Public Procurement Authority (ZPPA) said it was important that a modern public sector was built on a sound procurement system that was transparent, efficient and corrupt-zero rated.

“More importantly, the procurement system must be an important catalyst in achieving value for money. Hence the need for procurement reforms has become an immediate necessity,” he said.

Mr Chikwanda said the Government had been pushing for the implementation of the decentralisation policy since taking over last year in order to ensure that every citizen accessed public service regardless of the location.

He noted that the enactment of the Public Procurement Act and its regulations now provided a good platform for a decentralised procurement process.

The role of the ZPPA would from January 1, 2013 change as the institution would now assume an oversight and a regulatory role while the procurement function would be decentralised and devolved to procurement entities.

ZPPA recently made an upward revision of thresholds which marked another important chapter in the procurement reforms.

Mr Chikwanda noted that the newly launched measure would rationalize the procurement process and enhance efficiency and effectiveness as well as provide a basis for conducting fair, transparent and credible tender processes.

He applauded the commitment and continued support from cooperating partners as well as the contribution from civil society organisations.

Over 300 small scale farmers in Kapiri Mposhi district have threatened to camp at the District Commissioners (DC) office if they are not paid the money for the maize they sold to the Food Reserve Agency (FRA).

The farmers who thronged the DCs office as early as 06:00 hours today have also demanded that the government gives them back their bags of maize which they supplied to the FRA.

Speaking on behalf of the farmers, Damiano Haaninga complained that it was too much of government issuing promissory statements to farmers on a daily basis.

Mr. Haaninga stated that the payments to farmers have been deferred on several occasions despite government emphasizing that it had released the money to pay all of them before 20th November 2012.

The farmers have been frequenting both ZANACO and Barclays Banks for some time now but have been finding that there is no money in the Banks as both Banks have run out of money meant for paying the farmers.

“But what is this of government releasing money and then we are not paid because there is no money in the bank is the government lying to us’’ he said.

Mr. Haaninga said the farmers are in desperate need of their money because they want to procure inputs for the coming farming season stating that delayed payments will negatively affect the crop yield for the 2012/2013 farming season.

“It is very unfortunate that this is happening when we are in dire need of money to prepare for next season… they need to tell us the truth so that we look elsewhere,” Mr. Haaninga said.

Mr. Haaninga said the farmers are owed between K40 Million and K3 million each for the maize they supplied to the FRA.

But District Commissioner Beatrice Sikazwe has appealed to the farmers to remain patient as they wait to be paid their money.

Ms. Sikazwe who apologized for the delay in payments said the government will soon remit the remaining money to pay all the farmers in the district.

Government has so far paid out over K22, 8 billion to farmers who sold maize to the FRA in Kapiri Mposhi district leaving the balance of at least K14, 4 billion to fully pay the farmers in the area.

The FRA collected 572,094 by 50Kg bags of white maize from farmers in the district worth slightly over K37 billion.

ZANIS

The Government has completed compiling resource mapping data on the creation of industrial clusters in the country, Commerce Trade and Industry Minister Robert Sichinga has said.

Mr Sichinga said his ministry had finished collecting resource mapping data which was among other determinants towards the creation of industrial clusters.

Mr Sichinga said in Lusaka that the Government was determined to the create clusters as it would spread national development and wealth creation.

“The ministry has finished its resource mapping data in all the districts, this data will give us guidelines to what kind of industry and equipment to put at each cluster.

“As you may know this data is looking at what is available in each district that needs value addition that can create wealth for the country and the local community,” he said.

He said the Government intends to roll out a number of programmes primarily for the purpose of facilitating the creation of jobs and wealth.

The creation of industrial clusters would strengthen and widen Zambia’s manufacturing base with emphasis on the backward and forward linkages.

However, Mr Sichinga said this would require intensified development of resource based industries particularly those in rural areas with the aim of optimising value addition.

Earlier, Mr Sichinga said the Government would present to Parliament an Industrial and Value Added Act to pave way for the creation of industrial clusters in all the 75 districts.

“We want to put forward to Parliament of course after other approvals on what we are calling an Industrial and Value Added Act,” he said.

[Times of Zambia]