Mzuzu City Council workers have called off a sit-in over the council’s decision to trim pension contribution to Nico Life Insurance Company from 25 to 10 percent.
The council made the reduction in April 2025 as a measure to sustain its wage bill but the employees protested the decision, saying they will not get enough money as their retirement package.
The workers, through their union, called off their industrial action on Tuesday following a meeting they had with their employer and officials from the Ministry of Labour.
The workers’ treasurer David Jere said they decided to resume work following a plea the officials made during the discussion.
He said: “We resolved to resume work but discussions continue until we get what we want.
“The Ministry of Labour has advised the council’s management to orient the executive membership of our union, which was elected last week on August 14.”
Jere insisted that the council effected the pension reduction without engaging them.
In a separate interview, Mzuzu City Council spokesperson McDonald Gondwe confirmed that the council did not consult the workers.
He said: “We overlooked the importance of the collective bargaining process.
“But we found that the best way to move forward is to suspend the sit-in and pave the way for further discussion.”
In a separate interview, Human Rights Consultative Committee chairperson Robert Mkwezalamba said collective bargaining promotes employer-employee relations.
Besides pension remittance, the workers also want a salary increment of 10 percent.
The council stopped implementing the 25 percent pension remittance to its nearly 300 employees in 2017.
