FOR many workers, retrenchments and redundancies come as a traumatic experience and many fail to adjust to the reality of life after employment.
In fact many workers dread the day when their jobs are terminated because it means losing the security of a steady source of income and the many benefits that go with permanent employment.
It is difficult for people to adjust their way of life from the relative secure world of employment to the world of self-employment where competition is stiff.
Many retrenchees and retirees have ended up leading a life of misery not just because they did not receive reasonable terminal packages to kick-start their lives of self employment but because they were ill-prepared to face the challenges of life after employment.
It is common to see workers who recently left employment go on a spending spree and buying all sorts of luxuries that in real terms do not add value to their lives.
In some cases, families have broken down and left children and other dependants destitute because disillusioned bread winners could not cope with challenges.
The decision by Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) to hold seminars meant to prepare its former workers for the life ahead of them is timely and must be commended.
From the experiences, it is important that workers are prepared to handle life after leaving employment by counselling, giving entrepreneurial skills and generally changing their mindsets.
The programme, which is being undertaken- by Future Search and others for KCM, needs to be replicated in other companies as well.
With the global financial crunch, possibilities of firms shedding their workforce in a bid to remain afloat are high and managements together with trade unions should make this type of programmes as part of the workers' education.
This means that such kind of workers' education should be an on-going programme encompassing even those who leave employment on normal retirement.
It must also be mentioned that workers need to take such kind of initiatives seriously because it is about them and how they handle their lives after employment.
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