Civil servants reject pay offer

strike today.

According to our Harare Bureau, the salary increase for the highest paid civil servants would be $84 while $52 would be for the lowest paid.
The increase, which is on a sliding scale, does not indicate how much the workers would receive on basic salary, transport and housing allowances.
There are about 236 000 Government employees.
Civil servants went on a five-day strike starting on Monday pressing for a salary increase of up to $538 from $253 given to the least paid worker.
They, however, temporarily called off the strike on Tuesday to give a chance to yesterday’s NJNC meeting.
In a statement signed by its member bodies yesterday, the Apex Council said yesterday’s negotiations were not fruitful and accused the Government of failing to come up with specific figures on the proposed increment.
“The NJNC met on Wednesday 25 January, 2012. The Government has presented a resource envelope of $240 million as salary increment for the year 2012, an ambiguous offer, shrouded with many employment obligations.
“Apex Council has rejected the consolidated figure so as to respond to the express demands on salary, housing and transport allowances. Thus the meeting was adjourned without conclusion to Tuesday 31 January 2012 at 10am,” said the Apex Council.
“In light of this development we are left with no option but to return to the trenches until Friday 27 January as originally planned. Let us continue the strike and turn up in large numbers. This means the suspension of the strike is lifted until Friday, when we shall review developments. We urge our employer to avoid delaying tactics, which are calculated to prolong the conclusion of the negotiations.”
The Apex Council consists of the Zimbabwe Teachers Association (Zimta), Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (TUZ), Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ), College Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe (Colaz) and the Public Service Association (PSA).
In an interview after the meeting, Apex Council president Mrs Tendai Chikowore said the Government was not being sincere in its negotiations and vowed that civil servants would fight back.
“Our meeting did not produce any results because the Government did not give a specific position to the specific issues we made in our position paper.
“They only made a presentation of a global figure of $240 million and asked us how it can be allocated. That is not our responsibility,” said Mrs Chikowore.
“We told them to go back and come up with a specific response in the next meeting on Tuesday. Workers want to know how much they will get each. We want a specific salary structure and only after that we can talk about allowances.
“In the meantime we are going back on strike tomorrow and Friday. On Monday and Tuesday we will go back to work to show good faith in the negotiations. Any further action would be communicated on Tuesday.”
PTUZ secretary-general Mr Raymond Majongwe also blasted the Government for failing to address their concerns.”We had a long protracted meeting from 10am to 3.30pm which yielded nothing. The Government is not serious. They are taking us for granted.
“They want to prolong this strike themselves. They failed to give us a breakdown of figures. This Government is just trying to be impossible. As a result we are going ahead with the strike and we are not apologetic about that,” said Mr Majongwe.
Public Service Minister Lucia Matibenga declined comment on the issue, saying she was driving.
“I am travelling as we speak. I am in Bulawayo. You can call me after two hours,” she said before switching off her mobile phone.
However, her deputy Andrew Langa said it was regrettable that civil servants have decided to continue with the strike despite the Government’s offer.
“I am quite aware that the Government has availed $240 million, which should be parcelled out to our civil servants. I thought that since there was a figure on the table the civil servants would wait patiently for it to be appropriated to them.
“I am sure they are aware that we are running this country on very limited inflows. This is one Government effort I thought they would appreciate,” said Deputy Minister Langa.
“We appreciate that what we are paying them is below the Poverty Datum Line. I urge them to be patient with the Government while we break the $240 million.”
Deputy Minister Langa said the strike was already crippling essential services in the country especially the education sector.
He expressed optimism that the Tuesday meeting would bring the negotiations to finality so as to restore normal service delivery.
Meanwhile, a survey by a Chronicle news crew in Bulawayo yesterday established that the situation was not different from Monday as no lessons took place at most schools.
There was also confusion at some schools in some parts of the city, Matabeleland South and North as teachers ordered pupils to go back home.
Ends ckd ms