MANZINI – Public Sector Unions (PSUs) are not happy with the way the report adjusting their working conditions was presented to them.
They said they had expected government to outline the exact percentage that civil servants would get.
It is said that government might need about E2.7 billion to implement the much-anticipated salary review report.
According to the secretariat of the PSUs, represented by the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) Secretary General, Lot Vilakati, this was revealed by the consultant during their meeting held at the Hilton Garden Inn in Mbabane, yesterday.
The secretariat stated that the PSUs first met at the Ministry of Public Service, and the consultant sent a communiqué indicating that he could not meet with them yesterday. However, they insisted that they would not leave without receiving the salary review report. Eventually, they met with the consultant and the Government Negotiation Team (GNT) at the hotel.
After that, the consultant took them through the draft report.
Although they were expecting to receive the report with figures regarding increments in salaries and allowances, the consultant informed them that, in terms of positions, about 70 per cent of civil service positions would remain the same, while approximately 20 per cent would be upgraded and 17 per cent would be downgraded.
The secretariat was quick to highlight that even if some positions were downgraded, the pay grade of the workers in those positions would remain the same.
For example, if a position is on salary scale Grade D4 and is downgraded to Grade D3, those already in that position will continue to be paid at Grade D4 until they are promoted. Additionally, they would receive the recommended salary increase. The downgrade would only affect new individuals promoted to such positions later, as they would be paid at Grade D3.
Thereafter, the consultant presented several scenarios regarding how the salary review report could be implemented, with each scenario having its own estimated budget.
“In one of the scenarios, the consultant indicated that the implementation of the salary review report could increase the civil service wage bill by 30 to 40 per cent and government might require about E2.7 billion to implement it,” the secretariat stated.
It added that one of the scenarios was aligned with the E500 million budget that government, through the Minister for Finance, Neal Rijkenberg, tabled in Parliament when delivering the 2025/26 Budget Speech.
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