All about National Registration Cards and the Labour Laws in Zambia, Illegal use of National Registration Cards and more on Mywage Zambia.
Withholding of National Registration Cards (NRC) by some employers who justify the act as a way of preventing their workers from stealing is a huge trend in Zambia. Those mostly affected are domestic workers. In some cases employers use it as a way of forcing their employees to continue working for them.
But despite this tendency by some employers , it is illegal to hold onto another person’s NRC.
What does the law say?
The National Registration Act, Chapter 126 of the laws of Zambia, article 8 (3) states: “ Any person who finds or unlawfully comes into possession of a national registration card which is not issued to him shall, without undue delay, return it to the person to whom it was issued or forward it to the nearest registrar. “
Article 13 dealing with offences and penalties, states that any person who (e)“willfully destroys or mutilates any national registration card”; (g) “unlawfully deprives any person of a national registration card issued to him under this Act”, and (h) “is in unlawful possession of or makes use of a national registration card issued to any other person under this Act”, “shall be guilty of an offence and be liable to a fine not exceeding three thousand penalty units or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or both”.
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