Maravi

(HERALD) Employees urged to adopt internal bargaining

Employees urged to adopt internal bargaining
Business Reporter

EMPLOYEES should preferably take up internal bargaining and ease on collective bargaining by the National Employment Councils, human resources practitioners have said. However, this did not mean that employees should do away with NECs. "At present NECs have to wait for the next months’ bargaining process when prices of goods and services are changing everyday," an independent human resources consultant Ms Tambudzai Nyika said.

Internal bargaining is beneficial especially in hyperinflation where the wage structure and incentive system can be closely tailored to a broader package that includes motivation, she said.

"Internal bargaining has a lot of advantages to both parties of the bargaining process. At least the employer and employee have a better understanding of the business and of the cash flows. It also works well for the purposes of training and career development."

NECs have switched to monthly bargaining from quarterly and half-yearly in light of the erosion of the wages by inflation. Ms Nyika also noted that there were instances where employees could be in the wrong NEC for instance property developers are in the commercial sector as they are salesmen so they earn lower salaries because of the grade they would have been placed in.

Employers should at least ensure that they meet transport and accommodation expenses for their staff, human resources director for a local firm Mr Edward Chigwida said, adding that this would in turn increase productivity.

In most cases rentals are now being charged in foreign currency where a room in the high densities is going for 50 rand while an upmarket house is being rented for US$1 000.

Mr Chigwida said collective bargaining is not so much about setting a minimum wage nor about percentages but it was more about how the employer can incentivise workers in order to retain them.

Labels: ECONOMY, ZIMBABWE

posted by MrK @ 6:57 PM