MUZ / NUMAW respond to tax plans

Reuters report today responses from the two mineworkers unions, MUZ and NUMAW, to Friday's announcement of a new windfall tax on copper exports.

Mineworkers Union of Zambia General Secretary Rayford Mbulu said: "We now want the government to reduce personal income tax which is 35 percent of gross pay, including allowances so that the workers can benefit directly from the money the government will raise. The government should cushion the impact of high tax." Mbulu said the workers were "paying too much" in personal income tax while the owners of the southern African country's vast copper and cobalt mines paid less tax to the Treasury.

Numaw general secretary Albert Mando said miners were going to benefit only if the bulk of the revenue the government would collect was spent on improving facilities in mining areas. "We pay too much tax as people who produce the copper and we require some kind of cushion on tax, we want the government to address this in the budget this year. We would be glad if most of the money was spent on improving mine townships," Mando added.