The Public Servants Association (PSA), which represents more than 235,000 public servants, is expected to continue with its strike ballot this week after talks between the government and public service unions failed to hammer out a pay hike deal on Friday.
The PSA lodged a dispute at the public service co-ordinating bargaining council (PSCBC) in July after rejecting the government’s 2% cost-of-living adjustment offer and the R1,000 after-tax cash gratuity, which the state argues equates to a combined 6.5%.
Reuben Maleka, assistant GM of PSA, said the union obtained a “certificate of non-resolution and is ready to act upon the outcome of the ballot of its members and give the government seven days’ notice of strike action”. The balloting process is expected to end on Friday.
The public service unions, including Cosatu affiliates, are now demanding a 6.5% increase, having revised their demands from the initial 10% they called for when negotiations started in May. Their demand now is in line with the 6.5% headline inflation rate the Reserve Bank has forecast for 2022.
Maleka said the union started balloting its members on Friday after labour “unanimously rejected government’s proposed cost-containment measures” during talks at the bargaining council on Thursday.
“The majority of labour clearly stated that if the employer does not accede to labour’s demand, there will be no other option than to also declare a deadlock…. The employer’s offer thus remains at 2% and the majority of union declared a deadlock.”
If the deadlock is not broken through dispute resolution processes, a strike certificate would be issued to the other public service unions, allowing them to embark on industrial action, which could bring government services to its knees and disrupt hospitals and schooling.
Disciplinary action
On Wednesday, Cosatu, a labour federation with a membership of about 1.6-million, and its breakaway, SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu), which boasts about 620,000 members, are set to hold their national marches against load-shedding and the sharp increase in the cost of food, electricity, fuel and transport.
The departments of public service & administration; and planning, monitoring & evaluation, are set to brief the National Assembly on Wednesday on their respective consequence management policies on dealing with senior managers and heads of departments facing disciplinary action in the public service.
On Thursday, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), an intergovernmental organisation focused on economic progress and world trade, will present a new “economic survey of SA”, which examines the impact of Covid-19 on the country’s economic and society. The survey proposes reforms to overcome “long-running structural weaknesses and raise living standards”.
OECD secretary-general Mathias Cormann is expected to present the survey’s main findings and recommendations during a press conference, and take questions alongside finance minister Enoch Godongwana, who is accused of sexually assaulting a masseuse in the Kruger National Park area about two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, parliament’s inquiry into public protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane’s fitness to hold office resumes on Thursday. The committee, which comprises 26 MPs, has heard from several witnesses since hearings began in July.
To date it has heard predominantly critical testimony on Mkhwebane, who has been accused of letting politicians interfere with the institution’s work.
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