Chronicle Editor
The Government is continuing to demonstrate its commitment to alleviate the socio-economic challenges that its workers are grappling with by increasing their salaries this week.
Since yesterday, civil servants have been getting a 40 percent cost-of-living salary adjustment as their negotiations with their employer for a final agreement on salary and other terms continue.
This comes weeks after the Government announced that it will pay its workers a 13th cheque this year. The salary adjustment also comes a few months after the Government started paying all its workers a US$75 per month Covid-19 allowance. The payment of the allowance was originally meant to run for a few months but the Government has said the period had been extended.
We see these and more incentives as evidence that the Government recognises that the economic environment is challenging thus is doing all it can to cushion its workers. The payment should cushion civil servants who, like everyone in the country, are struggling amid the prevailing economic challenges.
We are hopeful that the cost of living adjustment will convince teachers who started a strike on Monday, to return to class and teach children who are set to write their final examinations in the next two months.
Earlier, workers in the health sector went on strike as well, but they returned to work after the Government committed to addressing their salary demands.
Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Cain Mathema, speaking in Parliament this week urged teachers to return to school as negotiations are ongoing.
“The situation for the reopening of schools on Monday 28th September 2020, was characterised by a high turnout for learners and a low turnout for teachers. The situation improved slightly on the second day and we are hoping that teachers will return to work while any grievances that they may have get addressed through the right channels. We understand some teachers have cited incapacitation but a teacher cannot have received his or her salary and be unable to report to work even for the first day,” he said.
“Where will be the rationale for Government to continue paying an employee who is giving no service at all? I would like to urge teachers to reflect and ensure that we find each other.
“Currently, there are over 20 000 qualified teachers who are looking for work and hundreds of thousands of learners who are looking for teachers. Government may have no alternative other than to ensure that the learners are supported with teachers so that they are ready for an examination whose dates have now been determined, that is the first of December 2020 to the 26th of January 2021.”
We are with him in appealing to teachers to reconsider their job action. The pupils have lost a lot of learning time since they prematurely closed schools in March after the Government implemented the lockdown to fight the spread of Covid-19.
It would be a bigger disaster if the strike drags on, depriving the children of even more learning time just as their final examinations are approaching.
As we appeal to teachers to return to work, we also want to prod the Government and civil servants unions to move with speed in finalising their negotiations so that a sustainable salary deal is struck. This would bring the stability that we all want to schools, hospitals and clinics countrywide.
It is also everyone’s hope that the relative price stability arising from the foreign currency auction system continues to hold.
Online Reporter