via Govt fails to bankroll civil servants pay rise – DailyNews Live by Mugove Tafirenyika 11 FEBRUARY 2014
Government’s pledge to increase civil servants’ salaries appears to be a pie in the sky as it emerges that the increment has not been effected as promised.
The civil servants were expected to receive their February salaries backdated to last month, according to a pay deal they struck with government, but they will have to wait a little longer as government has reneged on the promise.
Some civil servants, including members of the uniformed forces whose pay date is today, have received pay advice slips that do not reflect any increment.
Nicholas Goche, the minister of Public Service, confirmed that government employees were supposed to receive their salaries reflecting the increment this month.
Goche said he was not sure why the salaries had not been effected and promised to give a clear position after meeting with Finance minister Patrick Chinamasa and the chairman of the Public Service Commission Mariyawanda Nzuwa.
“We have said civil servants will receive their salaries this month backdated to January. I am not sure why it has not been effected.
“I will call you back after meeting with the minister of Finance today (yesterday),” Goche said.
He was not picking up his phone thereafter when the Daily News followed up on the matter.
Government and civil servants’ representatives last month agreed on a salary deal that was expected to see the lowest paid staffer getting three quarters of the Poverty Datum Line which they set at $505.
Another salary review was expected mid-year while the implementation of non-monetary and indigenisation benefits was scheduled to take centre stage in between.
David Dzatsunga, a member of the Apex Council representing College Lecturers Association of Zimbabwe, yesterday expressed dismay at the latest turn of events.
Dzatsunga said civil servants were going to regroup to map the best way to confront the challenge.
“It is not acceptable that government agrees with its employees and commit itself to improving our lot only to shift goal posts at the last minute,” Dzatsunga said.
“We are waiting to hear from them why they have not honoured the agreement so that we can regroup to see what course of action to take.
“We always felt that the employer was negotiating in bad faith and we had our reservations but for the sake of progress, we had to be patient”.
The latest development around the issue of salaries for government workers has raised questions over the sincerity of President Robert Mugabe and his Zanu PF party’s election promises that, once in power, they would improve civil servants’ salaries.
In the run up to the elections last year, Mugabe promised to increase civil servants’ salaries in line with the poverty datum line.
Under the previous administration, the party blamed its unity government partner, MDC, which was in charge of the finance ministry, for blocking salary hikes that it said it wanted to award to workers.
Civil servants make up the country’s largest workforce at about 230 000 and on average take home nearly $300 monthly against a poverty datum line figure of $560, which is the minimum set out for basic sustenance.
In his 2014 National budget statement presentation, Chinamasa said the salaries of civil servants alone were gobbling up nearly 75 percent of the state’s monthly income and that it was too high.
COMMENTS
You can’t make US$ appear by talking. This is not like diesel from a rock. Good luck ZANU. You have raised the expectation, now you must deal with it. Why not issue coupons. We can use them instead of money to pay our taxes and then you can pay the government employees with these worthless things. It will be just like the old days.
Since 1980s Zanu have failed they keep on promising and promising things that they actually know they can’t do it for the next coming years they will keep on promising and stupid Zimbabweans will keep on voting for Zanu so civil servants you will eat those promises
I even wonder if these civil servants are really educated people or there were just picked on the streets or their bunch of beggers who were just picked on the streets because if not something must be done fast because they canbt feed their families with empty promises every year since 1980 nooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Shut up your foul mouth. You are nt sure if the civ servants are educated or nt? Are you Zimbabwean or just a kwerekwere? If u are Zim, having been taught by a teacher (civ servant) u wuldnt be foulmouthing like that. Face the facts and stop insulting others.
You civil servants never learn? Why did you vote for this renegade regime which time and again makes outrageous promises during campaigning knowing fully well that they will not honor these promises? Deal with it because you are gullible. Get a life damn it. When the diaspora tells you not to keep on voting for these criminals, you insult them but look where you are now?
Iwe Chivhindikiti:
One day you are saying the vote was Nikuved, the next day you are saying Civil Servants voted overwhelmingly for ZANU PF.
Are you nuts or what?
Companies are closing down. Those operating have salary backlogs, zimra backlogs, nassa backlogs, zimdef backlogs. Unemployment is worsening. In other words the government revenue base is shrinking fast. Very soon, if nothing is done to stem this, government will have salary backlogs of its own. This is the wrong time to be coming up with salary hikes. I know people may not want to hear this but it is plain fact.
What is disappointing here is that most of the civil servants actually expected government to honour the agreement and pay them. They are that naïve! This is an unusual case in that the workers and the world at large can honestly say that the government is broke! Everyone knows the government is broke because Mugabe spent an absolute fortune to fund his vote rigging project. The situation has been made even worse by all these all-out looting that has been going on!
How can the nation have any meaningful economic recovery with all this criminal waste of human and material resources going on? Who would want to invest in such a chaotic environment?
The civil servants would have been more realistic if the demanded government action to address these core problems rather than waste time negotiating wage increases knowing fully well the regime cannot even afford to pay the present wages!
This is common sense
I am told on good authority that the ZANU Govt, will be able to beg borrow or steal enough money to pay the civil servants for about another three months. After that there will be no more money for salaries, never mind increases! What then Mr MUGABE?
I look forward to the day, because that is when the lower ranks of the SF will take to the streets and support the downtrodden people. Be scared ZANU trash your time is fast approaching!
if he cannot feed the army and the police then 4get about any increment. asahwirwa zvinhu zvaoma pano, hurumende yabroker!
Just shows how disjointed the working of cabinet is. Goche does not follow up on such an important issue with his colleague, the finance minister, to get an update. Inversely the Finance minister does not communicate such an important issue to the Public service minister. Anhu awa hawaziwi basa ravo, full stop. They all dont have a clue on how to execute their respective jobs. From Bob down to the last one of them. I used to think that maybe they are selfish. I now think these people are actually clueless. Remember Bob once said that those who voted for MDC should go and get whatever they want from the MDC. He actually believes it. Totally clueless.
Nearly time.
Where is that Zimta leader who said this time the negotiations were far better than those they did with the MDC T when it was in the unity government. She must come out and explain to civil servants and the world at large which better thing she meant.
Our civil servants have no brains to talk about.The country is going through its worst economic decline they waste time negotiating for empty promises.Just yesterday my daughters who work for big private companies were being told that their salaries would be cut by 15-30% to try and cut costs because all companies are struggling to survive whilst the so-called elected leaders are busy looting public funds with impunity.The workers have accepted this because they know the truth and are being practical NOT these naive and misguided civil servants led by almost illiterate union leaders who can not see beyond their noses.Sometimes you laugh at these people when they talk carelessly in public places exposing their lack of common sense and wisdom.I remember one lady teacher just after election dancing saying now that ZANU-PF is back in power we shall get big increases but she could not answer me when I asked her where the government would get the money with our current economy.We are dealing with naive and intellectually retarded civil servants to say the least.
I suggest that as civil servants they should become apolitical for this country to move forward.Their direct involvement in politics is very bad for the country,I hope some of them are now realising it.The country has no money therefore every body must follow the example done by the private companies to cut salaries until the situation improves.This is what they do in civilised countries to bail out troubled companies before trying other measures.
NOTE THAT ANY GOVERNMENT DOES NOT GENERATE REVENUE BUT IT SPENDS IT ONLY, PRIVATE SECTOR GENERATES REVENUE FOR THE GOVERNMENT NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND.
Correct MIXED RACE very correct when will these politicians realise we are their masters.
WE the POULACE employed them not the other way around same for Civil servants.
ARMY/POLICE we are the Managers of your future how can you try to shoot us we have done nothing wrong.
SEcurity forces you want to protect these that lie and give you false information,i think your guns are pointing in the wrong direction, Join us the people to show we are in charge not the few fat cats and definately not Mugabe, we put him there laet us take him out.
Civil servants and co you are employed by us the people not Mugabe and cronies
i told you Gvt was full of wishful thinkers and dreamers! Why don’t they borrow money from Cashbert Dube – he can use one months “salary” to give 14,000 civil servents their USD$79.00 pay increase and then he will qualfy to be buried at heroes acres bekoz he would have helped desperate sad Zimbabwe in its time of needs
well maybe Biti is right, the Zim $ might reappear!!
No sympathy for these civil servants who expected an increase while there is 80% unemployment in the country! Don’t worry people they wont go on strike, it’s too much like hard work which is a foreign concept to many of them. Then again 60,000 of them are ghosts.
‘Mixed race’ said it all.If people are to strike today the army and the police will come out in full force but they are also peniless. Why??? Because they are brainless.
There is need for Zimbabweans to show that enough is enough. But to achieve this our brainless brothers and sisters in the civil service must join the revolution.
My dear friends in the Force muchadya your buttons and shields and those in the Military u will eat your ammunition.
Chipiwaika mari yacho yekugona kusupressor the massess.When we try to fight for democracy u beat us mercilessly.Why??? Bcoz u are brainless.Election time is over saka zvamainyeperana zvakapera.Hamulume.Where do you think this corrupt Gvt will get the money.Hatibatsiranei tose kuunza Zimbabwe yakanaka.
all zvichaita let’s pray to God