Farmers fail to pay labourers
http://www.financialgazette.co.zw
Wednesday, 24 August 2011 21:21
Tabitha Mutenga, Farming Reporter
FARMERS are failing to pay their workers the minimum general agricultural
wage of US$44 per month, citing high production costs which they say have
already affected the viability of their operations.
Farmers at the ongoing Harare Agricultural Show told The Financial Gazette
that they were finding it difficult to pay workers the gazetted wages, which
are far too insignificant to extricate farm workers from poverty.
Glendale farmer, Rita Maisiri, said she could not afford to pay her workers
simply because the production costs did not allow her to pay them more than
US$30 per month.
“Most farmers rely on casual workers; employing farm workers permanently is
not profitable for some of us as they end up stealing from their employers
when we fail to pay them,” she said.
Most new farmers have failed to understand the importance of retaining a
skilled labour force especially when producing tobacco.
Tongai Marodza, a Comm-ercial Farmers’ Union (CFU) labour adviser, said
wages were determined by supply and demand factors in a labour market, a
factor largely influencing incomes in the farming sector.
He said the general agriculture wage of US$44 per month, which was backdated
to September 2009, was gazetted as a Statutory Instrument this year.
There was a feeling farmers were not obliged to make back payments to their
workers.
“It is absurd to think that any legitimate employer would willingly agree to
pay seven months or more back pay in the current multi-currency economy.
This seriously undermines the viability of agriculture,” he told guests at a
recent CFU congress.
Last year, the Nati-onal Economic Cou-ncil came up with another agreement
for the general agricultural sector effective Oct-ober 1, last year to
September this year, setting the minimum wage at US$55. This agreement is
yet to be gazetted by the Min-istry of Labour.
Most farmworkers were displaced during the fast track land resettlement
programme.
A number left the farming community for urban areas in search of employment,
while others resorted to gold panning to earn a living. This has resulted in
a serious shortage of skilled labour, crippling agricultural production.
Philip Nyakusa from Sanyati said family labour was more reliable than hiring
individuals for farm labour.
However, tobacco farmers said they relied heavily on consistent and skilled
labour and in some instances they were forced to pay their workers more in
order to retain them.
“As tobacco farmers, we are forced to look for a reliable team that will
bring results so we pay them a little bit more than US$44, including
incentives such as housing and groceries,” Shamva farmer Musafare Muzonza
said.
“Some farmers are now paying performance-related bonuses to ensure that they
do not lose specialised workers. It is difficult for the commercial farmer
to increase salaries at a time when the cost of other inputs are rising but
we need to retain the skilled labour,” Musonza said.