Public servants threaten to intensify wage pickets as talks collapse

The threat comes as unions' negotiators met with the employer at Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) in Centurion on Monday to try to resolve the wage impasse. 

Wage talks have deadlocked with workers accusing acting public service and administration minister Thulas Nxesi, and his counterpart in the finance department Enoch Godongwana, of undermining the bargaining process by trying to force a 3% wage agreement on workers. 

Nxesi invoked Section 5 of the Public Service Act to unilaterally implement a 3% wage increase in the public service, while Godongwana endorsed the decision during his midterm budget speech last week adding that the offer was in the best interest of the fiscus and public service workers. 

Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) first deputy president Mike Shingange has accused government of arrogance. 

Workers are demanding 10%. 

"There is no better display of arrogance and disrespect to the workers of this country than this. When we rejected the 3% they started throwing toys out of the cot and opting that the offer will be off the table. 

"We declared a dispute, and we are coming here for the purpose of finding a solution, they leave us here [at the bargaining council]…today they are leaving us in the conciliation and go to Parliament and they go to the budget and pronounce to implement the 3%," Shingage said while addressing workers affiliated to Nehawu, Denosa, Hospersa and Popru who picketed outside the gate of the PSCBC offices. 

READ: Public service unions to picket over wages

Meanwhile, Saftu's Zwelinzima Vavi has rejected the argument that the public service is bloated. 

"The public service in South Africa is not bloated. The latest research we did showed that there are 200 000 vacancies in the #publicservice; 40 000 in healthcare, 60 000 in the policing, 7 000 in public education so what bloating are they talking about?" 

Vavi said public servants are feeling the pinch of the high cost of living which includes food inflation, rising fuel prices, and hiked electricity tariffs. 

'They are dealing with interest rates that are now 9.2% in real terms. This is a crisis that the ministers are totally immune to because they have millions and they have free this and that," Vavi said. 

Union leaders say government's offer is an insult to workers who last got an increase in 2019. 

As it stands, only Sadtu has received the mandate to accept the offer, while the Public Servants Association is set to kick off its full-blown strike next week. 

Workers are expected to continue their countrywide pickets on Tuesday.