Due to its insolvent position, Konkola Copper Mines ( KCM ) management and the labour movement have suspended negotiations increased salaries.
Mineworkers Unions of Zambia (MUZ) president Joseph Chewe says KCM management and the unions have agreed to suspend the collective bargaining process for 90 days hoping that a new investor may take up the mine after which negotiations would resume.
Speaking in an interview , Mr. Chewe, who is spokesperson for National Union of Miners and Allied Workers, said the KCM management has admitted that under current social-economic condition, it cannot sustain increased salaries and other conditions of service for workers.
“KCM management is saying they cannot increase salaries because they are not able to sustain increased salaries because of the happenings in KCM so we have agreed that we review this position after three months maybe by then there will be a new investor, when that happens we expect some developments around KCM and that is when we expect to review the position,” He said.
He explained that the union has also observed that increased conditions of service cannot be tenable because the mine’s production has drastically gone down.
The MUZ president said the workers had rejected the zero increase position because they have had no salary increment in the past four years.
He however urged the workers at the mining company to remain calm as they wait on how things will unfold in terms of the mine ownership in the next three months hoping that a positive balance will be struck with a new investor soon.
Most Mining companies have concluded the 2022 collective bargaining process with most of them awarding their workers salary increments in the range of 7 to 10 percent.