adminIt is imperative for Government and its workers to have harmonious working relations if members of the public are to be efficiently served. Only motivated civil servants can guarantee an efficient service delivery.
What this entails is that Government and its workers should interact more often so that the employer gets to know the employees’ expectations and the employees on their part appreciate the challenges that the employer is facing.
The decision to form the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC) made up of Government representatives and civil servants’ union representatives through their Apex Council is highly commendable.
What is however disturbing is that this forum is being rendered irrelevant by individuals in Government. The NJNC is supposed to meet often to deliberate on, among other things, working conditions for civil servants that cover salaries and other benefits.
It is this body that is supposed to engage in collective bargaining for civil servants and whatever decision this body makes, should be binding to both the Government and its workers.
We have already alluded to the fact that there are attempts by individuals to disregard this important body hence the industrial disharmony being witnessed within the Public Service.
The workers no longer trust their employer, the Government, because the Government is deliberately avoiding meeting them. Finance Minister Tendai Biti announced just before his presentation of the national budget last November that civil servants will this month get an inflation-related salary increment.
This was rejected outright by civil servants who accused Minister Biti of attempting to impose a salary increment as opposed to engaging in collective bargaining. The Minister of Public Service, Lucia Matibenga has not helped the situation either by refusing to engage the civil servants representatives.
We want at this juncture to emphasise that it is crucial for both the employer and employees to negotiate in good faith when it comes to issues of conditions of service and remuneration. Government could be genuinely facing financial constraints hence its decision to settle for inflation-related salary increment for this month but as long as it does not engage its workers, they will always be of the view that it is being insensitive to their plight.
The country’s annual inflation rate is less than five percent, which means the salaries will be increased by about five percent, which has been rejected by the civil servants. It is a fact that the morale of civil servants is at its lowest ebb as the workers are of the view that Government is deliberately shortchanging them.
It is difficult to convince the civil servants that there is no money to pay them better salaries given the extravagant spending by the executive on what many consider to be luxuries.
Government is not doing itself a favour by remaining mum on what it intends to pay workers this month. This has caused unnecessary agitation among workers and what has worsened the situation is that the Government is reluctant to meet its own workers to explain its position.
We want to implore the Government to, without delay, work to improve its industrial relations which unfortunately at the moment leaves a lot to be desired.
The workers need to know the Government’s capacity or its limitations and this is only possible if Government and the workers engage each other more often.
Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter