University employees down tools, cite incapacitation

University of Zimbabwe employees downed tools on 21 February, claiming to be incapacitated since schools opened on 7 February and demanding that the government restore their salaries to the pre-October 2018 cap of at least US$540, writes Priveledge Gumbodete for NewsDay.

In a memorandum seen by NewsDay dated 17 February, addressed to Vice-Chancellor Paul Mapfumo by the Association of University Teachers and the University Technicians Association, the workers’ committee said continuous deterioration of the economy had rendered their salaries worthless, thereby triggering incapacitation. The University of Zimbabwe workers said they could no longer afford transport as well as lunch, making it difficult for them to provide their services.

“The lowest-paid employee at the university earns a net wage of ZW$21,000 (US$58). Meanwhile, according to ZimStat [Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency] data published in December 2021, the total consumption poverty line based on the cheapest food and non-food basket was ZW$8,009 per person per month or ZW$48,054 per month for a family of six. According to the Consumer Council of Zimbabwe, a family of six needed ZW$72,967 for basic expenses during the same period,” the memo read.
Full report on the NewsDay site