Government representatives and officials from the Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (ZCPSTU) – formerly the Apex Council – were expected to hold a meeting this Friday on public sector workers’ conditions of service.
This was confirmed by ZCPSTU secretary-general David Dzatsunga who told the Daily News on Thursday that public sector workers remained incapacitated in spite of a recent 40 per cent salary hike. Said Dzatsunga:
It’s a crunch meeting. We cannot speak about that (40 per cent increment) announcement because it is not coming from any negotiations.
We have already made our demands known. Workers are incapacitated and our greatest expectation is for the government to be able to heal the incapacitation.
We are open to negotiations, but we cannot negotiate in public. We will wait for tomorrow (today)’s meeting.
This comes as teachers have steadfastly refused to return to work since schools reopened in September, pressing for better pay and working conditions, among other things.
Civil servants, in general, have also rejected the 40 per cent salary raise, insisting on their pre-October 2018 salaries.