High expectations as govt meets civil servants unions over pay

Harare (New Ziana) – The government was on Friday meeting representatives of its workers under the banner of the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC) amid high expectations of a significant pay increase.

Announcing the meeting on Thursday, Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister Prof Paul Mavima said the government remained committed to improving the welfare of its employees and will continue to engage their representatives.

“Following my announcement on 25 June 2023 that the Government will effect a new remuneration package that includes an increment in the United States dollar component for civil servants to cushion them from the rising cost of living. I am pleased to announce that Government and worker representatives will convene the National Joint Negotiating Council meeting on 7 July 2023 to discuss conditions of service for civil servants,” he said.

In an interview with New Ziana following the announcement, Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions secretary general David Dzatsunga said expectations were high among the workers ahead of the negotiations.

“We are hoping that the employer will increase the US dollar component and the Zimbabwean dollar component as well, and that it will make the USD component the basic salary,” he said.

Civil servants currently earn USD$250 in allowances which started off as a Covid-19 cushion, while the pay is pegged in local currency.

Asked why they always publicised new salary packages as that prompted retailers to increase prices of basic commodities, Dzatsunga said it was difficult to keep them under wraps.

“We have been grappling with that issue for quite some time now, just trying to find a way to make sure that the salary does not become a matter of public interest. We want salary negotiations not to be a matter of public interest but because it is the public service, there is a lot of interest from so many quarters. Other unions rush to share the figures and also the political clan when they think they have done something which can give them popular appeal, they rush to publish the figures so it is very difficult to control that,” he said.

Mavima however has previously said it was the civil servants who always go public with the new salary packages whenever they were tabled.

He said the government could not gag its workers as it acknowledges that the Constitution guarantees them freedom of speech.

The government has since adopted the military pay concept through which it awards special remuneration packages for the men and women in uniform and their salaries are no longer a matter of public knowledge.

In the past, salaries for the military were also announced through the Service Commissions together with those for civil servants.

New Ziana