Nehawu vows to go to war over civil servants’ salaries
The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (NEHAWU) has vowed to fight until the bitter end for salary increases for civil servants.
It follows comments by Public Service and Administration Minister Senzo Mchunu on Thursday that the state simply has no money to implement a wage increase for public servants.
“In an unexpected yet silly move the Minister decided to try to use the media to pacify unions and plead for the sympathy of the public using half-truths,” says national spokesperson Khaya Xaba.
Mchunu made it clear government is standing by its zero percent salary increase, with government and labour returning to the Bargaining Council today.
Xaba accuses the minister of returning to negotiations in bad faith.
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“While the Minister insisted that we should allow the Council to deliberate and conclude on the ongoing salary negotiations, that did not stop him from using the media to negotiate and try guilt trip labour into reversing the gains of workers.
“We view his little stunt as part of the broader agenda of undermining collective bargaining by the government of the day. The national union vows to fight until the bitter end to defend collective bargaining which did not come on a silver platter in this country,” adds Xaba.
Currently workers are demanding a consumer price inflation increase plus 4%.
Unions are also demanding a risk allowance of 12%, because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Some of the civil servants include frontline healthcare workers who have been battling against coronavirus for more than a year.
Nehawu warns that these workers and millions of others, are gearing up for a mass strike, should the negotiations deadlock.
