By Wendy Magagula

MBABANE:Eswatini underpaid workers will afford a five(5) litre cooking oil, chicken portions and a ten(10)kg meal-mealie.

This comes after King Mswati’s government through the Ministry of Labour and Social Security approved Gazettes that empowers employers to pay workers as little as one thousand,one hundred Rands(R1,100)each month. Some of the workers who are struggling with low salaries include those in the manufacturing and processing industries, forestry and catering among others.

A 5L cooking now costs about three hundred Rands (R300),10kg meal-mealie costs around one hundred Rands (R100,00) and a 5kg chicken portion costs one hundred and sixty Rands (R160.00). This then brings the total to five hundred and sixty Rands (R560.00) excluding the rental of a one room flat that cost about R700.00, transport not to mention school fees for children.

Labour Minister Phila Buthelezi had not responded at the time of compiling this report.

Reached for comments, Wander Mkhonza, the Secretary General of the Amalgamated Trade Union of Swaziland (ATUSWA) said they were aware that workers, particularly those in the textile industry, were struggling to buy food, not to mention rent,transport, clothes and school fees for their children.

“We know for a fact that textile employers are not prepared to pay salaries that would enable the workers to feed themselves, not to mention buying clothes, rent and transport.Even those customers, overseas who are buying these clothes must know that they are buying clothes produced by workers who are not treated like human beings,” said the ATUSWA Secretary General.

On another note, King Mswati when dispersing his regiments at Buhleni Royal Palace last week, urged senior citizens to teach young people the culture of kuhlehla (working for authorities without expecting any payment).