Dube could pocket $20m

via Dube could pocket $20m – DailyNews Live by Roadwin Chirara 29 JANUARY 2014 

Retired Premier Service Medical Aid Society (Psmas) chief executive Cuthbert Dube could walk away with nearly $20 million following his forced exit from the cash-strapped organisation.

Normal human resources practice dictates that terminal benefits should be calculated at between three to four months’ salary for every year served in the organisation.

Dube, who was on Monday forced to quit his post, has been reportedly earning a $230 000 monthly salary.

The ex-Zimbabwe Broadcasting Holdings chairperson, according to the company’s website has been with the medical services provider for the past 27 years, having joined the old Public Service Medical Aid Society in 1986 as an internal auditor and later elevated to chief executive officer in 1992.

What this means is that the debt-ridden medical services provider could be forced to fork out as much as $18,6 million in terminal benefits as part of Dube’s exit package.

Psmas is currently reeling from debts of over $38 million, being unpaid bills for medical services rendered to its members who stand at more than 600 000.

Human resources experts however, said the long-serving executive should have been fired, without any terminal benefits, for failing to fulfil his mandate.

Memory Nguwi, a managing consultant at Industrial Psychology Consultants said Dube did not deserve to be paid as he had failed to fulfil his mandate at the helm of Psmas.

“Since he has left because of a scandal he should not be paid anything, after all he failed to fulfil his role as the head of the company,” he said.

On whether the payments due to the former chief executive would be that high, Nguwi said it was likely the institution would negotiate the package.

“If he was earning a normal salary, then normal procedures would apply, but in this case they might have to look for new parameters as the old ones do not apply.

“His salary is just not normal as chief executive’s average between $10 000  and $15 000 per month,” he said.

Nguwi said the government-owned institution should have taken the disciplinary hearing route, thus allowing it to terminate his employment at no cost to the organisation, if found guilty.

“That is the correct route they should have taken when handling his case. If there is an offence or one is suspected, one is taken for a hearing but in some cases the employer can chose to pay them off and this is usually negotiated,” he said.

“In most cases, top executives are given golden handshakes to save face for the company yet actually they deserved to be dismissed from their roles.”

Dube was on Monday relieved of his duties by the company’s board through retirement, with the changes also claiming the scalp of its chairperson Meisie Namasasu.

Initially, the board had resolved to slash his salary to $60 000 per month, a top market ripple given prevailing rates.

Developments at Psmas come amid an outcry over salaries paid out to top executives at the society who were reported to earn between $120 000 and $230 000 per month.

Altogether, the top management at Psmas were earning at least $1 million monthly.