The Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (ZCPSTU), formerly the Civil Service Apex Council, has pleaded with the Government to restore civil servants’ United States dollar earnings to $300.
This comes after the Government introduced deductions on the US$300 COVID-19 allowance following its conversion to a pensionable salary with effect from this month.
NewZimbabwe reported ZCPSTU president Cecilia Alexander as saying civil servants are now earning less than what they were getting last year. Said Alexander:
While the ZCPSTU appreciates the noble gesture by the employer to make the US$300 the salary, there is however an outcry from all public sector employees regards the new salary structure.
It is the workers’ experience that the deductions on the USD have left them with inadequate disposable income constituting unfair labour practice on the part of the employer.
It is a trite labour principle that an employee’s salary shall not be subject to reduction for any reason.
In light of the above, ZCPSTU expects the employer to restore the workers’ take home to more than USD 300 without compromising the principle of USD as the salary.
The decision to turn the US$300 allowance into a salary was announced by the Minister of Finance, Economic Development, and Investment Promotion, Mthuli Ncube during the 2024 National Budget presentation.
Over the past several years, civil servants have been demanding that the Government raise workers’ salaries to pre-October 2018 levels of US$540 per month for the least-paid employee.
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