Unions representing civil servants have informed their members that salary negotiations with government, which commenced in February 2021, have reached a deadlock. The matter has now been referred for conciliation to the Office of the Labour Commissioner.
The Namibia Public Workers Union (Napwu) and the Namibia National Teachers Union (Nantu) have declared a dispute. Napwu and Nantu submitted a salary and benefits incremental proposal for the financial year 2021/2022 to the government in February 2021.
The unions requested a 10% increment for salaries across the board, a 25% increase to qualifying amounts on housing subsidies, a 9% increase on housing allowances, a 10% increase on transport for civil servants below management, and N$7 per kilometre tariff increase. Despite efforts by the unions to revise its initial proposals for basic salary from 10% to 5%, the government still didn’t consider it.
The only partial benefit government is willing to make an offer on is housing allowance where management and staff members below management would get a 4.5% increase. The other benefits the government is also willing to offer is another 4.5% for the housing ownership scheme, and a 10% transport allowance increase for staff members below management level.
The two unions, after having thoroughly interrogated the implications of a cumulative zero offer by the government since the 2018/2019 financial year, found it impossible to accept government’s counter offer, which only catered for benefits partially. Napwu general secretary, Petrus Nevonga, and Nantu secretary general, Loide Shaanika yesterday argued in a joint statement that civil servants were not granted any salary increment or improvement on conditions of service from the 2018/2019, to 2021/2022 financial years. The trade unions were adamant they acted in good faith in requesting the government negotiating team to go seek a mandate to improve on its offer in response to the unions’ revised proposal catering for benefits during the 2021/2022 financial year and a 5% salary increment for the financial year 2022/2023.
The government was expected to give feedback to the negotiation team on 18 February 2022. “It is irritatingly demoralising that the government in its letter dated 17 February 2022 responded in echoing its position as fixed by Cabinet on 8 February 2022.
This persistence by the government is notwithstanding caution expressed by trade unions on the sensitivity of cumulative zero offers spanning over five to 10 years of government terms. Since 2018 to date, civil servants demonstrated maximum self-restraint in the face of low national economic performance exacerbated by the outbreak and impact of Covid-19 pandemic,” argued the unions.
The two unions interpreted government’s immobile position as a deadlock. The negotiation team met on 26 January 2022 and again the government requested more time to exhaust a consultation process and seek a full Cabinet mandate by 8 February 2022, and give feedback to the main negotiation team on 11 February 2022. Again, on 11 February 2022, feedback was given by the government only considering the trade unions’ revised proposal partially and also outside the financial years as proposed by unions.
This, to the unions, meant the proposal on salary increment was not considered at all. –anakale@nepc.com.na