An Analysis Of The Constitutional Protection Of The Right To Collective Bargaining In Zimbabwe

Abstract

From a historical perspective, the right to collective bargaining has often been rendered impotent by an interplay of factors. Before the major reforms introduced by the Labour Amendment Act, the right to collective bargaining was nominally proclaimed but denied in substance. The Constitution marks a pinnacle of the process that stated with the Labour Relations Amendment Act. Section 65 of the Zimbabwean Constitution now unambiguously provides for the right to collective bargaining. This constitutional provision is the fulcrum of collective bargaining laws in Zimbabwe. This is because the constitution lies at the top of the hierarchy of legislation in Zimbabwe. Any legislation that is in conflict with it is invalid. The Constitution is a transformative legal document that is both a backward looking and forward looking document. However, it must be mentioned that the Constitution extends the right to collective bargaining to all but security services employees are excluded from the enjoyment of the right. These are members of state security. They are different from private security employees like security guards. This effectively endorses the view that military personnel, members of the prison service, members of the police force and members of the central intelligence do not enjoy the right to collective bargaining. At the end of the day, they are exposed to the dictates of their employer whose conditions of employment are unquestionable. Apart from the members of security service, the rest of public service employees now enjoy the right to collective bargaining under section 65 of the Constitution.