Labour legislation in Zimbabwe: Historical and contemporary perspectives

Abstract

The relationship between the legal and social structures which underpin social relations of production is potentially an area of fruitful inquiry. It is the intention of this paper to examine the basis of the Industrial Conciliation Act promulgated in 1934 and subsequently amended in 1960 and labour legislation that was enacted at independence in 1980 and 1981 and later incorporated into the comprehensive Labour Relations Bill of 1985. It is hoped that a critical evaluation of the material basis of this legislation, its conjunctural significance and its expression of social contradictions will assist in our understanding of its importance and limitations. This exercise will be attempted in relation to the analysis of the evolution of the regulatory controls over trade unions, the structure of the dispute settlement machinery and the heated public and parliamentary debate on the merits and demerits of the Labour Relations Bill which now exists as a fully fledged Labour Relations Act (LRA).