“You'll Be Fired if You Refuse” - Human Rights Watch

can’t be dismissed without good reason. They can only be dismissed when
their work record is poor.... It is necessary to have some laws in the early
stages of development; equality gets sacrificed. Inequalities are a reality at
every stage of development. They should learn to accept this. 51
Another longstanding issue invariably at the top of the list of concerns of Zambian mine
workers is wages. Chinese copper mining companies often pay base salaries around onefourth
of their competitors’ for the same work. Although the Chinese copper mines do pay
more than the Zambian monthly minimum wage, raised in early 2011 to 419,000 Kwacha
(US$87), workers and union officials who spoke to Human Rights Watch consistently said
that the pay was insufficient to meet their basic needs. A miner at Chambishi Copper
Smelter (CCS) explained problems to Human Rights Watch echoed by his colleagues:
Before the [2009] global crisis, I worked at KCM’s [Konkola Copper Mine,
owned by an Indian mining conglomerate] smelter. At the time I was laid off,
I was making 2.9 million Kwacha (US$604) there as my basic pay…. Now,
for working in the CCS smelter, I make just over 640,000 ($133). The pay
here at CCS, it’s peanuts. It’s a drop in the ocean….
The money is very difficult with the economy here. I have a wife and three
kids. A two-room house in the township is 500,000 Kwacha ($104) a month
to rent. So even when you count my allowances, that leaves maybe 500,000
for food, cooking oil, electricity, water, [children’s] education, and anything
else. It’s just not possible. The only way I am surviving is from money I saved
when working at KCM. That and I borrow money. It’s Kalaba, which means
borrowing money that you have to pay back with 25, 50 percent interest…. I’m
falling into serious debt, but it’s the only way to survive. At KCM, I used to
save money, advance my family, and I was doing the same job. 52
Pay has grown steadily since CNMC first opened their copper mining operations. The
lowest monthly salaries that existed at Sino Metals and CCS two years ago, around
350,000 Kwacha ($73), would not meet the recently raised national minimum wage. 53 NFCA
51 “Beyond Controversy, Development in Africa: China’s Actual Situation in Zambia,” Southern Weekend (Nanfang Zhoumo),
November 4, 2010 (translation by Human Rights Watch). The article states further: “When asked about the difficulties in
investing in Zambia, besides referring to the limited local market and a low-quality workforce, Chinese businesspersons
most often point out how local labour laws are ‘too stringent.’”
52 Human Rights Watch interview with miner A at CCS, Kitwe, July 16, 2011.
53 The monthly minimum wage was previously 268,000 Kwacha (US$56).
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