Sino Kaiyuan Mining company fined K130,000 for labour law breaches

Ministry Principal Public Relations Officer, Mwaka Ndawa, said the sanctions followed a joint inspection at the company on March 10 conducted by Kaunda Mwale. The inspection team also included officials from the Zambia Institute of Human Resource, Workers’ Compensation Fund Control Board, National Health Insurance Management Authority and Labour Minister Brenda Tambatamba. Ndawa said the company was fined K40,000 for failing to register 63 expatriate employees with the Labour Commissioner’s office, another K40,000 for breaching occupational health and safety standards by not providing personal protective equipment, and K50,000 for lacking mandatory employment policies.

“Sino Kaiyuan was directed to procure a bus to facilitate safe transportation for workers, improve the quality of meals provided to employees, and sanitation standards,” she said. Tambatamba said foreign-owned companies must comply with Zambia’s labour laws and international labour standards, stressing that workers’ rights must be prioritised. “Corporate social responsibility must start with the fair and humane treatment of workers.

Before a company speaks of community projects, it must first ensure that the people who drive its productivity are treated with dignity, protected at work, and provided with decent conditions,” she said. She also underscored the need for employees to be allowed to unionise and engage in collective bargaining, saying strong worker–employer engagement was key to stable and productive workplaces. Tambatamba further highlighted the importance of human resource practitioners in ensuring internal compliance with labour laws.

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“Human Resource functions are the frontline of labour law enforcement within organizations,” she said, noting that effective HR management helps reduce legal risks and prevent workplace disputes. The Minister urged employers across all sectors to meet their legal obligations, including ensuring worker safety, maintaining proper employment documentation, and complying with regulations governing expatriate employment. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.

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