Minimum-wage law hurts Zimbabwe workers

A government decision to set a minimum wage for workers has backfired for thousands, with wholesale firings being reported throughout the county. Officials of the ruling party of Prime Minister Robert Mugabe said Sunday that in the Salisbury area alone more than 5,000 workers were fired before the minimum-wage bill came into effect last Tuesday. The worst hit, according to the officials, were domestic servants and farm workers, for whom the minimum has been set at $45 a month.