Riot Cops Called To BancABC
Riot cops were called to the scene when BANC-ABC effectively fired 75 workers yesterday morning.
The mass retrenchment sparked demonstrations outside of the building by disgruntled workers and other people who felt that the company was being unfair with the mass retrenchment.
Some of the workers protesting outside said that they were not satisfied with the way in which the company fired them and that they had little to no knowledge of the possible retrenchment:
We were given dismissal letters last Friday but without any benefits…[sic] The company recently posted good results showing that it is making a profit but they are throwing us out without any compensation. We reject the dismissals targeting shop-floor workers,” one person said, asking not to be identified.
BancABC is the arm of pan-African banking group ABC Holdings, which is 98,70 percent owned by Atlas Mara, an investment company co-owned by former Barclays Plc chief executive Bob Diamond and African entrepreneur Ashish Thakkar.
Labour unions say over 20,000 workers have lost their jobs following the 17 July Supreme Court ruling, and last week Parliament rushed through the Labour Amendment Bill to stop the bleeding, but it is yet to be signed into law, with more changes in the offing.
