In a dramatic indication of the state of Zimbabwe’s inflation-plagued economy, the Government has announced that all Public Servants will receive a 45 per cent pay rise in July.
Coming after wage adjustments made earlier in the year, this means that public sector workers will have received a 70 per cent boost in pay so far in 2021.
A despairing Minister for Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Paul Mavima (pictured) told a media conference that the 25 per cent increment would be affected while negotiations with workers’ representatives continued on ever greater rises.
“Negotiations are going on, but there are still differences with the representatives of Civil Servants,” Professor Mavima said.
“We are still committed to effecting next month’s 45 per cent adjustment as we had planned earlier,” he said.
“We are also discussing the next moves within the Government.”
Professor Mavima said he had tasked Permanent Secretaries from the Ministries of Education and Finance, as well as his own Ministry to have discussions in the hope of coming up with a common position that could be presented to the unions.
Public Servants are pushing for at least US$540 ($A702) per month for the lowest paid workers — the United States dollar is used because the Zimbabwe currency is practically worthless.
The Government has refused to give in to that demand.
The 45 per cent raise will not placate the restive public sector workers as prices of basic goods and services have gone up by at least that in the past month after the Government sought to introduce new measures which were not well received by business.
Harare, 14 June, 2021
