via Doctors demand December salaries and bonus payment – The Zimbabwean 29/12/2015 by Francis Rwodzi
The Zimbabwe Hospital Doctors Association is greatly saddened by the circus characterising the payment of their December salaries and the long overdue bonus disbursements for 2015. The ZHDA maintains that the ill treatment by the employer through uncertain pay dates and violation of contractual obligations is a violation of the labour laws of this country and is also grossly inhumane and insensitive.
Our good doctors have tried to hold forth treating millions of patients throughout the festive season with the hope that the meagre salaries we get from the employer will be disbursed timeously. The shifting of paydays and bonus payment for health workers must be grossly condemned by all right thinking Zimbabweans and is a resemblance of the greatest acceptance of failure by the responsible authorities. Are we able to justify such a sombre festive season for our hardworking doctors who endure long, unpaid and torturous working hours in our hospitals?
Isn’t it insulting to play hide and seek with our bonus when the Minister of Health who has just returned his loot remains mum on non monetary incentives despite our open hand to engage? In all fairness our doctors deserve a billion times the current treatment and any attempt to thwart the disbursement of bonus payments and December salary will be viewed as a direct provocation. The flamboyance that we continue to see in the Health Services Board and the hefty perks our minister seems to enjoy are not in tandem with the chorus of limited fiscal space.
The ZHDA reinstates that:
* Our December Salary and 2015 bonus be disbursed on or before the 31st of December. Our members countrywide will not be able to attend to their duties from the 1st of January 2016 should this be violated.
*The arrogance shown by the ministry of health in failing to honour our agreement on non cash incentives to date must be condemned with the strongest terms possible.
* The ZHDA will immediately send formal communication to the Minister of Health, Minister of Finance , Clinical Directors and Heads of departments on this strict deadline. Our legal advisors have also been tasked to mount a legal challenge on this contractual violation. Measures will be enacted to protect our doctors from threats and victimisation
We call upon the government to immediately come up with an alternative funding model for health workers salaries as we foresee a turbulent 2016 should this anaemic and lethargic approach to health workers salaries continue.
No December salary, No 2015 bonus, No free Doctors!
ZHDA NATIONAL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
COMMENTS
Where is ZFTU – they always hassle me about my workers plight???
Shoes on the other feet now?
Grace.
Robert?
These doctors are getting cheeky.
Yes dear, very unreasonable.
They should be happy to have jobs.
Quite right dear.
Plain and simple if they had the money they would make the payment there is NO MONEY NO MONEY at least not in Zimbabwe I would check Singapore.
The last hope and last payment is based on how much the 45000 police deployed to various corners of the country can squeeze out of visitors.
The best action for the police is to pay them selves first.