Beyond the Enclave: Towards a Pro-Poor and Inclusive Development Strategy for Zimbabwe

Chapter 7 - The Labour Market

250 Chapter 7 The Labour Market 7.1 Introduction In economic terms, labour is a measure of the work done by human beings, and labour markets occur wherever workers supply labour services (the supply side) in return for conditions of service provided by those who demand such services (employers).1 Labour markets function through the interaction of workers and employers, resulting in a pattern of wages, employment and income (Ashenfelter and Card, 1999). The administration of the labour market – labour administration – refers to public administration activities in the area of national labour policy. The ‘system of labour administration’ covers all public administration bodies responsible for and/or engaged in labour administration – whether they are ministerial departments or public agencies, including parastatal and regional or local agencies or any other form of decentralized administration – and any institutional framework for the co-ordination of the activities of such bodies and for consultation with and participation by employers and workers and their organizations.2 The multiplicity of stakeholders requires that the functions and responsibilities of labour administration should be properly co-ordinated, which implies that consultation, co-operation and negotiation between the public authorities and the most representative organizations of employers and workers is essential at the national, regional and local levels and within the various sectors. To implement these effectively, qualified staff with the material means and finances are needed. The key aspects of the labour administration system include: ÝÛ CYZgmjÛklYf\Yj\kÛ¦ÛlgÛj]_mdYl]Ûl]jekÛYf\Û[gf\alagfkÛg^Û]ehdgqe]fl ÝÛ CYZgmjÛj]dYlagfkÛ¦Ûo`]j]Ûl`]Ûkqkl]eÛ]fkmj]kÛl`]Û^j]]Û]p]j[ak]Ûg^Û employers’ and workers’ rights of association. ÝÛ . The Labour Market 251 sharing responsibility for the management of funds created to counter underemployment and unemployment or assisting the employment of certain categories of workers. ÝÛ CYZgmjÛj]k]Yj[`Û¦Ûl`]Ûkqkl]eÛg^ÛdYZgmjÛY\eafakljYlagfÛemklÛ[YjjqÛgmlÛ research and encourage others to do so. Labour administration plays a critical role in socio-economic development by ÝÛ ]fkmjaf_Ûkg[aYdÛklYZadalqÛ^gjÛo]Ydl`Û[j]Ylagf– ÝÛ ]f`Yf[af_Ûhjg\m[lanalqÛYf\Û][gfgea[Û_jgol`Ûl`jgm_`ÛkcaddÛ^gjeYlagf– ÝÛ Ykkaklaf_ÛafÛl`]Û]jY\a[YlagfÛg^Ûhgn]jlqÛl`jgm_`Û]ehgo]je]flÛafalaYlan]kÛ for (self-)employment; ÝÛ hjgeglagfÛg^Û\][]flÛogjcÛYf\Ûaf[ge]kÛhgda[q– ÝÛ hjgeglaf_Ûkg[aYdÛbmkla[]ÛYf\Ûk`Yj]\Û_jgol` Thus, labour administration plays its full role in development if it contributes to the maintenance of a healthy social climate, if the services that it offers are effective and correspond to the needs of users, if the services and products contribute to the design of development strategies, and if the social partners participate. This chapter explores the role of the labour market in Zimbabwe since the attainment of independence in 1980 up to 2009.3 The first section focuses on the role of labour administration and, by inference, the labour market in poverty reduction. Labour-market policy interventions covering the period 1980–2008 are discussed in the second section, which analyses the developments in policy during the three phases: the first decade of independence, 1980–1990, the period of the Economic Structural Adjustment Programme (ESAP), 1991–1996, and the crisis period (1997–2008). The processes that saw the emergence of a dual labour market during the colonial era are traced to provide a historical understanding of the forces that resulted in labour-market segmentation. Discussion of the performance and outcomes of the labour market then follows, while the next section examines developments during the transitional period following the inception of the Inclusive Government in February 2009. Conclusions and recommendations are the subject of the last part of the chapter. 7.2 The Role of the Labour Market in Poverty Reduction The resurgence of neo-liberal policies in the 1980s and 1990s resulted in social objectives – and in particular poverty reduction and its eventual eradication – being treated as residuals in the development process. Such approaches, and especially the structural adjustment programmes (SAPs) implemented in most developing countries on the recommendation of the IMF and World Bank, focused exclusively on achieving macroeconomic stability, believing that this 3 Aspects of the analysis in this chapter draw from and expand the discussion in Kanyenze (2009). Chapter 7 252 would result in sustained growth, which in turn would ‘trickle down’ to benefit the poor through employment effects. As things turned out, macroeconomic stabilization was often achieved, but at the expense...