Civil servants rejected a salary offer tabled by the government during a National Joint Negotiation Council (NJNC) meeting held in Harare on Thursday.
Zimbabwe Congress of Public Sector Trade Unions (ZCPSTU) chairperson Cecilia Alexander told NewsDay that what the government had offered was too little and embarrassing.
She said the parties agreed not to publicise the offer until an agreement has been reached. Said Alexander:
We agreed with the government not to publicise the offer in order for negotiations to proceed in good faith. We outrightly rejected the offer from the government.
What government offered as increments were too little from what we are asking. However, we agreed on further engagements.
We allowed the government to make further consultations so that it comes up with meaningful proposals at the negotiation table.
In other issues, we deliberated on the issue of school fees payment for teachers’ children, to which we agreed that both parties (government and ZCPSTU) should follow up on the matter to ensure that every eligible teacher benefits from the incentive.
The NJNC will meet again on Thursday next week for further deliberations.
Under the NJNC, civil servants are demanding a salary increment that will see the least-paid worker earning US$840.
Currently, teachers are earning at least $36 000 and US$120, plus a US$75 COVID-19 allowance.
In other news – Teachers demand US$1k salary
Teachers have threatened to down tools over meager salaries which they have described as “poverty packages.”
In a statement Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (Artuz) said while other civil servants got salary increments theirs has remained the same despite several requests made to the government.Learn More
