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Oliver Kazunga, Senior Business Reporter

THE draft National Productivity Bill would soon be presented to the Tripartite Negotiating Forum (TNF) as Government moves to promote social dialogue with business and labour, a Cabinet minister said yesterday.

The National Productivity Bill (NPB) seeks to improve productivity and competitiveness of the country’s industries by supporting labour law reforms.

Officially opening the Employers’ Confederation of Zimbabwe (Emcoz) 37th annual congress in Bulawayo, Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister, Dr Sekai Nzenza, said the NPB was one of the necessary steps towards achieving an upper middle-income economy by 2030.

“The TSP is giving us a roadmap of where we want to be by 2030 but we are not going to get there tomorrow. We have to make the necessary steps and one of the steps is the production or development of a draft Bill, the National Productivity Bill. 

“This Bill will be coming for consultation at the TNF. Going forward we are not going to simply present a Bill that has not been discussed and this is why the TNF comes absolutely important in the consultation process,” she said.

It is hoped that the NPB will promote productivity-based collective bargaining.

Minister Nzenza expressed optimism that the TNF will play a critical role in the development of the Bill so as to promote social dialogue. In an interview later, the minister said a technical committee met three days ago to discuss representation on the TNF.

“The next meeting, which I understand is going to be convened very soon, will consider the National Productivity Bill and I realise the sense of urgency and we are simply taking action,” she  said.

Dr Nzenza said the TNF scrutiny of the Bill was in line with the new dispensation’s drive to create a vibrant social platform with business and labour. Against this background, she said Government was required to consult parties in the TNF to foster social dialogue, something that has not been happening in the country in recent years.

“This is an incredible platform that will help us to interrogate the issues of social economic interest affecting the workers,” said the minister.

Speaking at the same occasion ZCTU president Mr Peter Mutasa said there was a need to promote social dialogue between parties involved in the TNF by building trust.

“Apart from trust, there is also the need for accurate information. 

“All of you here including me, don’t trust information coming from Government and this is compromising social dialogue.

“The other issue that is also of concern is political stability. When elephants are fighting, people are the grass and we are therefore concerned. What is happening between the major political parties is also filtering through to some of us who are fighting for social justice because there is polarisation,” he said.

Emcoz acting president Dr Israel Murefu said it was imperative for the Government to mend relations with trade unions.

“The prevailing relationship is not conducive for social dialogue. I think it is in the public domain that labour and Government have got serious differences, they are fighting. And to come back and say let’s have a tripartite negotiating forum when we have two parties that are fighting being part of that forum does not work.

“We have told Government that they need to mend their relations with the trade unions so that we don’t get embarrassed when we go out there as a tripartite negotiating forum. It is embarrassing when your nation is seen in bad light by other nations that have got systems that are working,” he said.

Dr Murefu said in the past various Statutory Instruments were promulgated without input from business and labour.

“There is a need to get input from other social partners so that the laws speak to the aspirations of everybody and then when it comes to people breaking the law, we can then be able to go and rebuke a fellow employer to say ‘we agreed on this collectively but you are breaking it’. In such a situation I have moral ground to rebuke a fellow employer,” he said. — @okazunga