Workers at Jairos Jiri Primary School in Southerton, Harare, downed tools in protest of their unpaid salaries.
Jairos Jiri is a charity organization that was founded in 1950, with the aim of assisting people with disabilities.
The workers, who have not received their wages for nearly a year now, took to the streets to voice their grievances.
During the protest, the workers chanted, “Taramba zvemadhisinyongoro,” which translates to “We refuse to tolerate disorganization.”
They also held up placards with messages like “We want our money, we are starving, we are struggling to pay our rentals and make ends meet.”
Maxwell Nyandoro, the chairman of the center’s workers committee expressed his dissatisfaction with the treatment they are receiving from the management.
Nyandoro, who has been working at Jairos Jiri for more than a decade, stated: “We wrote to management two weeks ago, giving them a 14-day ultimatum to respond to our grievances.
“But they failed to address our concerns and this protest is a result of the management’s failure to address our grievances, which we have been trying to communicate for years.”
In a sign language interview, a deaf and mute Celeb Ndawi (60) expressed his frustration saying: “I have nothing to show for my 30 years of service. I’m struggling to provide for my two children in primary school, who are being cared for by relatives since their mother passed away.”
According to Nyandoro, Jairos Jiri’s Human Resources Manager, Mary Muchingamidzwa, addressed the workers during the protest. Muchingamidzwa informed them the organization currently has no funds to pay their salaries.
Muchingamidzwa informed them that the organization currently has no funds to pay their salaries.
Instead, she suggested providing them with cloth bales for selling, in an attempt to help them make ends meet temporarily.
However, the workers rejected this offer, insisting on receiving their rightful salaries.
When contacted Muchingamidzwa, she acknowledged the protest but refused to comment further. “I’m not the owner of the organization, I can’t comment on that,” she said.
Efforts to get a comment from Walter Ruvhere, director of Jairos Jiri, were unsuccessful, as Muchingamidzwa refused to share his contact details with us, despite our repeated requests.
