diff --git a/applet.cpp b/applet.cpp
index 69782bae8..ebf522ec2 100644
--- a/applet.cpp
+++ b/applet.cpp
@@ -2153,8 +2153,8 @@ void AppletPrivate::resetConfigurationObject()
 }
 
 uint AppletPrivate::s_maxAppletId = 0;
-uint AppletPrivate::s_maxZValue = 0;
-uint AppletPrivate::s_minZValue = 0;
+int AppletPrivate::s_maxZValue = 0;
+int AppletPrivate::s_minZValue = 0;
 PackageStructure::Ptr AppletPrivate::packageStructure(0);
 
 AppletOverlayWidget::AppletOverlayWidget(QGraphicsWidget *parent)
diff --git a/private/applet_p.h b/private/applet_p.h
index bcdaa9362..0a7ff572e 100644
--- a/private/applet_p.h
+++ b/private/applet_p.h
@@ -84,8 +84,8 @@ public:
     QString configWindowTitle() const;
 
     static uint s_maxAppletId;
-    static uint s_maxZValue;
-    static uint s_minZValue;
+    static int s_maxZValue;
+    static int s_minZValue;
     static PackageStructure::Ptr packageStructure;
 
     //TODO: examine the usage of memory here; there's a pretty large