Meat Corporation of Namibia (Meatco) employees have called for an overhaul of the company’s entire management including the board for maleficent, maladministration, nepotism and alleged disregard of employees’ welfare.
In a petition, the workers demand better salaries and took issue with the extension of the board’s tenure for another two months after its term had lapsed at the end of June.
“The board of directors have no clue what is happening within Meatco, they are failing to monitor and assess the operations of the company,” Meatco shop steward Joseph Kambala said in a petition handed over to Meatco’s Chief Executive Officer Mwilima Mushokobanji.
In the petition, Kambala rubbished the company’s decision of not effecting any salary adjustment for the 2023/24 financial year, allegedly because the company is not in a sound financial position.
The employees have placed the blame on Meatco’s board, saying “it has not sanctioned the increment of salaries which is often done in March each year.”
The employees called for the removal of the board including the entire management citing that they have allegedly failed to recognise the efforts of the workforce.
“More than 300 cattle are being slaughtered in a day on many occasions, we are therefore not convinced that Meatco does not have enough funds. In addition, producer’s prices were adjusted in order to increase throughput to sustain the business, but nothing was achieved. Hence, we want to know where the money went, and we suspect misappropriation of finance,” Kambala said while calling for the Minister of Finance and Public Enterprises, Iipumbu Shiimi, and Calle Schlettwein of Agriculture, Water and Land Reform, to intervene.
Hordes of employees under the stewardship of the Namibia Food and Allied Workers Union (NAFAU) on Tuesday staged a peaceful protest demanding better employment perks, chief among them, a 14% salary hike, a housing allowance adjustment to N$1,000 including an 80% company medical aid contribution.
In addition, the workers are demanding the permanent appointment of half of the fixed-term contract (FTC) employees, and increasing FTC hours to 97.5 hours a month, while in cases where they are required to work short hours, they should be accorded nine hours.
“We [the FTC employees] want to be granted an annual bonus like other employees and paid severance packages when contracts lapse. Also, we want transport allowance for Katima Mulilo abattoir fixed-term contract to be in line with Namibia Bus and Transport Association (NABTA) rate. Also, they should be paid according to the existing Meatco and ZAMCO wage agreement,” Kambala, who read the petition on behalf of the other employees, said.
Other issues raised related to the poor management, circumvention of human resource recruitment policies, and the resumption of operation of the Rundu abattoir.
Meanwhile, Mushokobanji said the company will study the petition and respond accordingly afterward. The matter is however submitted to the Labour Commissioner for conciliation and is to be heard on 27 July.
