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Urafiki told to stop paying workers in bales of clothes
2007-11-12 08:59:23
By Nasser Kigwangallah
The Tanzania Union of Industrial and Commercial Workers (TUICO) in Dar es Salaam has restrained the management of Tanzania-China Friendship Textile Company Ltd (FTC) from paying its workers bales of clothes instead of money.
The call was made by TUICO Dar es Salaam region secretary Salum Katanga in the city yesterday when talking to workers who had assembled at the Urafiki Social Hall to raise their grievances.
He said it was wrong to pay workers substitutes such as products they manufacture instead of cash (money), which they are entitled to according to the law.
`I urge the management to adhere to the stipulated rules and regulations by paying the workers their due in cash and not by clothes, and TUICO would not tolerate an irresponsible management who fails to adhere to these rules,` Katanga warned.
About 1000 FTC workers owe the factory millions of money as leave, overtime and other benefits which, according to reliable sources, the FTC management does not have the cash to pay at the moment.
That is why they decided to pay them clothes to offset the debt owed by workers to FTC.
Among the issues raised at the workers` meeting was the fate of 500 casual labourers who were sacked by the firm`s management recently for what was termed as the latter`s inability to pay them the new salaries which were recently announced by the government.
The workers called for all the sacked labouerers to be reinstated immediately so that peace and tranquility could prevail at the factory.
The Minister of Labour, Employment and Youth Development, Cpt John Chilligati urged FTC management to reinstate all the workers and should not sack any for any frivolous excuse that there was no money to pay them.
Speaking at the meeting, the Human Resources Manager, Moses Swai admitted that there was a mistake in sacking the labourers.
He said it was a panic on part of the management and that they were working on the government`s directives to reinstate the labourers and recruit them on a permanent basis.
`Discussions are still going on aimed at finding a permanent solution to the dispute,` he confirmed and added that the issue of paying the workers bales of clothes was a choice by the workers themselves.
He said whoever was in need of clothes would be paid according to his/her wishes and whoever needed money would be paid in kind.
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