This article is based on Chapter 7 of the latest book “A PRACTICAL STEP-BY-STEP GUIDE TO RETRENCHMENT LAW, IN ZIMBABWE” which is available in hard copy.
The procedure outlined in the Labour Amendment Act 11 of 2023, which requires employees to approach the Retrenchment Board when they do not receive their retrenchment package, is, with respect, cumbersome, time-consuming, and costly. It is recommended that the legislature consider streamlining this process by allowing affected employees to approach the Labour Court directly for the enforcement of retrenchment packages without the need to go back to the retrenchment board.
Under this proposed approach, employees should be permitted to present a retrenchment certificate and/or a retrenchment agreement before the Labour Court to seek enforcement of the outstanding payment. This would eliminate the need for the current multi-step process, which requires the employee to return to the Retrenchment Board, present evidence of non-compliance, and wait for the issuance of a non-compliance certificate—only after which the employee can approach the Labour Court.
This process is unnecessarily repetitive, particularly considering that parties already receive a retrenchment certificate during the retrenchment process, confirming the retrenchment’s validity. This certificate, along with any evidence of non-payment, should be sufficient for the Labour Court to issue an order compelling the employer to fulfil the retrenchment package obligations.
Simplifying the procedure in this way would expedite the resolution of disputes, reduce legal costs, and provide retrenched employees with quicker access to their entitled packages.