All is not well at the perennially struggling Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) in the wake of indications that the state broadcaster’s underpaid workers are now demanding a meeting with President Emmerson Mnangagwa to convey their grievances.

In a memo addressed to Media, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Permanent Secretary Ndavaningi ‘Nick’ Mangwana dated 6 October 2022, the workers, declared incapacitation, and listed a litany of grievances against their employer, ranging from staff welfare to deteriorating standards.

 

In the memo, the workers also cited grievances which include, abuse of company resources, high staff turnover at both executive and general staff levels, and the state broadcaster’s unpreparedness for harmonised elections to be held next year.

“ZBC employees have since declared incapacitation and are requesting your office to facilitate a meeting with the Head of State to hand over a petition and highlight several issues that have been affecting them. This comes after months of requests by employees to meet the first citizen,” partly reads the memo from the ZBC Workers Committee.

We publish a full text of the memo, below. Read on:

MEMORANDUM

TO: PERMANENT SECRETARY, MR N. MANGWANA

CC: CHIEF DIRECTOR, MR J GANDARI

FROM: ZBC NATIONAL WORKERS’ COMMITTEE

DATE: 6 OCTOBER, 2022

SUBJECT: INCAPACITATION OF ZBC EMPLOYEES AND REQUEST TO MEET THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF ZIMBABWE

The above subject matter refers.

ZBC employees have since declared incapacitation and are requesting your office to facilitate a meeting with the Head of State to hand over a petition and highlight several issues that have been affecting them. This comes after months of requests by employees to meet the first citizen, which was delayed by the ZBC Workers’ Committee with the hope that a long-lasting solution would be found for the problems bedeviling the corporation and employees…….

The main issues are:

  1. Staff Welfare- failure to comply with NEC minimum salaries, and pension.
  2. Covid-19 allowances- 5 months arrears.
  3. Unpreparedness for the 2023 elections period- resources, transport, equipment, and staff morale.
  4. Abuse of company resources- fuel, hiring of vehicles.
  5. Victimisation.
  6. High Staff Turnover- at Executive, Management, and General Staff levels
  7. Nosedive of ZBC standards- content, brand, and local allowances for productions.
  8. Collapse of the relationship between employees and the CEO.

We look forward to an amicable solution.

Thank You

Zwnews