A parliamentary standing committee yesterday claimed employee relations at the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation have reached an all-time low following devastating strike action last year. 

This was revealed by members of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Human Resources and Community Development during a public hearing with NBC executives and the board yesterday.  

The hearing reflected on the NBC strike - the longest in the history of the national broadcaster - which lasted over a month and was premised on the principle of “no work, no pay”.

NBC workers last year embarked on a nationwide legal strike, demanding an 8% salary increment, to be backdated for 24 months. However, the strike ended disastrously when NBC bosses refused to meet workers’ demands, saying the corporation simply did not have the money. 

Workers returned to work, losing a month's salaries. During the hearing, NBC board member Tim Ekandjo insisted that the relationship between management, staff and thr board was at top-notch level. 

However, the committee felt otherwise. 

“Mr Ekandjo said something extraordinary. He said the working relationship between management, the board and employees are at top-notch level at this particular point in time. I can put it down to you now, Mr Ekandjo, that the working relationship and the morale between the management and their employees is at an all-time low,” committee member and PDM MP Maximalliant Katjimune countered.

“And perhaps there is a mismatch between management and the employees on the ground because what you are saying now is a total contradiction to the numerous testimonies from workers on the ground.”

His sentiments were supported by fellow MP Elma Dienda, who described the relationship as toxic.

“Mr Similo (NBC director general), apparently you are going to Keetmanshoop to buy KFC in front of their office, and you don’t even go there to greet them. Things are so toxic that you don’t even have the humanity among you to say ‘the strike is over. Can we start over now?’ “You guys have no idea how toxic your relationship is. These people were literally crying over the ill-treatment they got from you - this is the crux of the matter, Mr Similo,” Dienda said during a hearing that lasted more than four hours. Similarly, another member of the committee and Swapo MP Ephraim Nekongo decried the state in which the NBC employees are, describing it as bad.

“After this strike, everyone appears to be in their corner, with NBC workers in one corner and management in another. Workers are going to work for the sake of going to work. The situation at NBC is devastating. We have seen people crying, and we got emotional with them,” he observed.

“As we speak now, your employees are at cash loans. What we need to come up with now is how we get them out of there – four months without a salary is no joke. 

Members of the committee said they had visited nearly every NBC office in the country, where almost every employee had voiced complaints about the alleged poor treatment they had received from management.

The NBC management was also slammed over the N$5.4 million in performance bonuses they paid themselves, despite their claims that the corporation had no money to pay for salary increases.

“Don’t you feel the timing of the bonuses was a little bit insensitive, especially after you had told people that there was no money for salary increases? Also, how do you rate your performance as a manager or an executive without including those on the ground, who carried you all the way to the top?” parliamentarian Charmaine Tjirare, who is also part of the committee, questioned.