Investors should address issues of health, safety – MUZ

Investors should address issues of health, safety – MUZ
By Kabanda Chulu in Kitwe
Mon 22 Mar. 2010, 04:00 CAT

MINEWORKERS Union of Zambia (MUZ) has said there is need to compel investors to place emphasis on addressing issues of health and safety as compared to focusing on profits only. Opening the supreme council meeting, MUZ president Rayford Mbulu said too many lives in mine accidents were being lost.

“We have serious occupational health and safety concerns that need redress, we have lost too many lives in preventable mine accidents hence the need to compel our investors to put healthy and safety issues on the mines and casualisation as primary concerns and profits as secondary pursuit,” Mbulu said last week.

He challenged the government and other political leaders to regularly visit mine operations and communities to understand the challenges being faced in the sector.

“In line with promises made during elections, we expect our leaders to be accountable to the people and to consult the people on issues and their priority areas of development for good roads, good schools, good hospitals, clean and affordable water and other amenities,” Mbulu said.

He advised MUZ members to stand firm in solidarity to fight for the rights of workers in order to get a fair share of their toil and sweat.

The supreme council was held to review the previous year as well as appointing of a committee to plan for the hosting of the quadrennial conference that would usher in a new MUZ executive for 2010 to 2014.