5 November 2008
STRIKING Zamtel unionised workers in Kitwe yesterday chased away Zambia Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) deputy secretary general, Alfred Mudenda from the company premises before he could finish addressing them.
In Ndola, workers spurned pleas by National Union of Communication Workers (NUCW) general secretary Clement Kasonde to return to work so that the union and management could resolve the matter.
The workers who have remained adamant to pleas to resume work, did not want to be addressed by ZCTU before the NUCW national executive committee (NEC) officials could do so.
Mr Mudenda had in the morning gone to Zamtel premises to plead with the employees to resume work but he was instead asked to leave even before he could conclude his address.
A Times of Zambia reporter found the irate workers gathered at the entrance to the premises where they closed the gate and refused clients entry.
The workers who sung and displayed anti-management slogans refused to give Mr Mudenda attention, maintaining that ZCTU was not party to the negotiating team.
Mr Mudenda who was accompanied by ZCTU director of public relations, Martin Chembe and branch NUCW officials led by engineering chairman, Ebyshy Chinkoyo, had a tough time convincing the workers to spare him some moment to talk to them.
After protracted pleas to get their attention, Mr Mudenda, with the help of the NUCW branch officials addressed the workers but before he could finish, he was asked to leave because all they were interested in was an increment in their salaries and nothing else.
Before he was sent away, Mr Mudenda tried in vain to convince the workers to get back to work to give chance to the negotiating team.
Meanwhile, ZCTU President Leonard Hikaumba said the motherbody had intervened in the impasse between Zamtel management and unionised workers because the work stoppage had continued and entered the third week.
Mr Hikaumba said ZCTU, NUCW, as well as Zamtel management would today meet in Lusaka to resolve the impasse.
He said there was urgent need for management to ensure that workers' needs were met because negotiations were supposed to start in April this year, but were put off on management's request.
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