Debswana Union Demands Reinstatement of Workers

Botswana’s workers union is continuing to demand the reinstatement of more than 400 Debswana workers who were fired after striking recently, saying its agreement with the company that ended the industrial action earlier this month is conditioned upon taking the workers back.

If the workers are not reinstated, the union is threatening other as yet unnamed actions will be taken.

Following months of tense negotiations, Debswana and its workers union BMWU agreed in mid-September on a salary raise and a one-time bonus that was expected to end an edgy period in worker relations.

However the agreement reached was on condition that negotiations dealt only with the salary and bonus issues and not include the return of dismissed employees. They have been invited to re-apply for their old jobs together with other applicants.

The union claims that they only accepted the new agreement on condition that all the workers who took part in the strike could return to work.

“Management's interests were centered [on] wage and salary negotiations only, and they said they would not negotiate the fate of the dismissed employees unless we signed the salary agreement they were offering ... but management has reneged on that and, as a union, we have decided not to recognize the agreement and press on with the demand for the reinstatement of our dismissed colleagues," BMWU chairman Chimbidzani Chimidza told United Nations news organization IRIN.

However, Debswana employee relations manager Jacob Sesinyi told IDEX Online the company is sticking to its decision, and dismissed workers need to apply for the 400 vacancies, saying 20,000 people have already applied.

Meanwhile, Botswana's appeal court rejected this morning (Tuesday) a request by the union challenging the labor court order that ruled the strike illegal.