Nurses at Zimbabwe’s public hospitals downed tools on Monday to protest against low salaries and poor working conditions.
The nurses are demanding to be paid in the more stable US dollars and a hike in their monthly salary by over 500 percent.
They are currently paid an average Z$20,000 a month, which translates to around US$60 at the official exchange rate and even lower on the thriving parallel market where the US greenback is trading at more than 600 Zimbabwe dollars.
Both the Zimbabwe Nurses Association and the Zimbabwe Professional Nurses Union have threatened to continue with the strike until their demands are met, insisting that their members are unable to report for work due to “incapacitation”.
The country has witnessed a recent surge in prices of basic commodities and transport.
JN/APA