Civil servants threaten to stage one-day strike

“The meeting was not as fruitful as we expected it to be. What she presented was not quite adequate and at the end of the day she said she needed to talk to her counterparts in the Ministry of Finance, the Public Service Commission and others.”
Ms Chikowore said they agreed and gave her up to Tuesday to consult here counterparts.

“We agreed to give her a few days and because we are behind time we gave her up to Tuesday.
“However, all members of the Apex Council have agreed to mobilise Government workers to stage a strike on Thursday. We will then see after the strike if the Government would do anything,” she said.
Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association secretary general Mr Richard Gundani said there was a lot of anxiety among civil servants.

“We spent the whole day in a meeting today but there has been no breakthrough for us. The Government has not come up with a position on the issue of salary increments,” said Mr Gundani.
“We are disappointed and there is a lot of anxiety and questions without answers among civil servants. No one from the Government is in a position to tell us what they are planning for us.”
Mr Gundani said they agreed to adjourn the meeting to Tuesday and said it was important for Government to come up with a position on the issue. “Right now the Joint Negotiation Council is not meeting and we

have no one to talk to. We want the minister to unlock the system and make it function well for the benefit of the civil servants.

“She has the authority to at least make some changes. We are tired of consultations which do not come to an end,” said Mr Gundani.
The civil servants want the lowest Government worker to earn $538 a month up from $253.
Teachers, who are receiving incentives, said they want them scrapped once the salaries have been reviewed.

They argue that the incentives are not paid regularly and at times they get less than the agreed amounts depending on the affordability of school authorities.
Efforts to get a comment from Minister Matibenga were fruitless, as her mobile phone was not reachable.
Public Service Deputy Minister Andrew Langa confirmed the meeting between the civil servants and the minister but could not give details.

“Unfortunately, I was not in Harare to attend the meeting but as Government we are concerned about the civil servants’ remuneration and we would make adjustments if the Ministry of Finance avails the funds.
“As the Government we are always playing our role and showing our commitment, but the awarding of increments depends on the Ministry of Finance,” said Deputy Minister Langa.

He said the Government had written to the  Ministry of Finance for funds specifically for civil servants.
“We have since written to the Ministry of Finance to avail more funds so that civil servants get more money. If the ministry releases the money, we will not hesitate to give civil servants what they deserve,” said Cde Langa.