By Zweli Martin Dlamini

MBABANE:Pick N’ Pay, a reputable retail outlet managed by King Mswati’s Financial Advisor through African Alliance Eswatini has been implicated in serious violation of workers rights.

It has been disclosed that, employees are forced to work an unpaid overtime,public holidays are allegedly not paid for, while provident fund deductions are not remitted to the Eswatini National Provident Fund(ENPF).

The reputable retail outlet with alleged links to King Mswati,through African Alliance Eswatini contracted NDZ Consulting,a labour broker to provide labour services.

Pick N’ Pay workers under NDZ Labour Broker told this publication that,they are allegedly subjected to exploration including underpayment and/or un-competitive remuneration, the workers are not entitled to leave pays and other benefits.

“We are forced to work an unpaid overtime”, said one of the employees.

On Monday,NDZ Consulting wrote a memo directing all employees to comply with a work schedule issued by Pick N’ Pay and according to an investigation conducted by this Swaziland News,the work schedule appeared to violate workers rights by forcing employees to work for about twelve(12) hours only to be paid for only eight(8) hours.

“Employees are supposed to work according to Weekly Work Schedule issued by client’s management. Employees are required to comply with this policy and by no means otherwise”, reads the memo dated 18th March 2024 and directed to Lojaf(Pty) Ltd trading as Pick N’ Pay Eswatini.

A questionnaire was sent to King’s Financial Advisor Sthofeni Ginindza,however, he had not responded at the time of compiling this report.

Reached for comments on Sunday evening, Dumsani Ngcamphalala, the Managing Director(MD) of NDZ Consulting denied that,the workers were being forced to work an overtime without payment.

“What normally happens is that, some workers work overtime without seeking authorization from the Management and Pick N’ Pay will then refuse to pay. So we are working in ensuring that,no employee work an unathorized overtime”, said the NDZ Managing Director. 

But a former member of the Pick N’ Pay Management confirmed that,the employees were exploited, ill-treated and forced to work an unpaid overtime.

“I am no longer working there, my boss who was previously owning Pick N’ Pay took some of us to work in his other companies after selling the retail company to African Alliance.But I am always in touch with the staff we left there.Bayabagcilata hhayi kancane.Lokwentekako lapha,uma lesisebenti sisebente more than the eight(8) hours,let say eleven(11)hours,the extra three(3)hours akabalwa. It’s the Pick N’ Pay Management doing this because every month they submit the number of hours worked by the workers to NDZ for preparation of invoices. So if they submit less hours, they won’t pay more money.It’s painful because if you are forced to work extra three(3) hours per-day,that’s a lot of money per-month as overtime”, said the former Manager.