By CHUSA SICHONE –
MORE than 19,000 workers retrenched during the Public Service Reform Programme (PRSP) 19 years ago have now turned to President Edgar Lungu for help.
The workers who have been pushing for their dues since 1997 are confident that Mr Lungu’s intervention would bring the long-standing matter to conclusion.
Representative of the retrenchees, Elijah Sakala told the Sunday Times that only 3,003 were paid by the ministry of Justice following the release of K8 million by the ministry of Finance in October, last year, leaving 16, 572 retrenchees unpaid.
“The reason for the delay is known by Cabinet Office Public Service Management Division (PSMD).
“Our last hope is the Head of State to assist the old, blind men and women, poor, innocent souls in any way possible and then we shall be grateful to the Government of the day since we have suffered for the past 19 years,” Mr Sakala said.
He charged that subjecting the retrenchees to many years of waiting for their terminal benefits was tantamount to mockery, adding that some had since died of frustration and depression.
This is a case in which John Muyoya and 19,577 other retrenchees sued the Attorney General seeking clarification on the payment of their benefits.
According to a PSMD statement availed to the sunday times in August, last year, the retrenchees were paid their packages in line with the Redundancy Package Agreement between the PSMD and National Union of Public Service Workers.
The retrenchees, however, sued the Government, through Messrs Lukona Chambers, Okware and Associates, DB Mupeta and Company, Rabson Malipenga and Company, and Milner Katolo and Associates, claiming that there were some underpayments regarding calculations of long service bonuses.
The court ordered that the bonuses be re-computed in accordance with PSMD provisions of circular No. B2 of 1997 and the Redundancy Package Agreement between the Division and the National Union of Public Service Workers of June 11, 1992.
The PSMD verified and re-computed the benefits and submitted a report comprising 12, 270 plaintiffs on November 21, 2014 to the Attorney General on the re-computed figures.
The report was shared with the plaintiffs’ lawyers for their verification before any payments were made.
The re-computed benefits showed that 51 per cent were overpaid, 26 per cent underpaid, 15 per cent correctly paid and eight per cent did not qualify.
The findings prompted the plaintiffs’ lawyers to request that the PSMD, ministry of Justice, representatives of the plaintiffs and their legal team to verify the re-computed figures as the plaintiffs disputed the report alleging that it was erroneous.