The decision to award the increment was announced by Public Service Minister, Lucia Matibenga, saying it would be backdated to January.
The Minister of Finance, Tendai Biti during his 2013 budget presentation last year announced that civil servants would get an inflation related salary increment starting in January.
The Chairman of the Apex Council, a body that brings together civil servants’ unions in salary negotiations with the government, David Dzatsunga, said the increment would not adequately address their concerns.
He castigated government for deciding on behalf of the civil servants.
"It’s clear that government does not consult workers. This increment was announced in the 2013 National Budget presentation and those things were done without consulting anyone again. The increment is really nothing to write home about. It signifies nothing,” said Dzatsunga.
The President of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, Takavafira Zhou, blamed government for lacking the will to effectively address the plight of civil servants.
“This is not an increment. It is a cost of living adjustment which tells us that inflation has risen by 5,3 percent. Also, it shows us that government has not yet started to look into the plight of civil servants seriously,” said Zhou.
However, Zimbabwe Teachers Association Chief Executive Officer, Sifiso Ndlovu, said the increment was acceptable given the fact that currently, civil servants do not have a negotiating body recognised by the government.
The Apex Council has been rocked by leadership wrangles following the election of Dzatsunga in August last year. The Public Service Association which falls under the Apex Council has since written to the Ministry Public Service dismissing Dzatsunga’s leadership.
The move has prompted Matibenga to write to the civil servants asking them to put their house in order first before they can engage with the government over salary negotiations.
Said Ndlovu: “I think in the absence of negotiations, we will receive that increment. We are hamstrung by our capacity to negotiate and we will not crucify Matibenga for that,” said Ndlovu.
He however highlighted that government should ensure that civil servants get salaries that are in line with the Poverty Datum Line.
The lowest government worker is earning $296 at a time the Poverty Datum Line is pegged at $600.
Post published in: News