National
Deadlock in public wage talks could spell damaging strike─── 10:51 Wed, 06 May 2015
Cape Town - By Monday afternoon, May 11, South Africa will hear whether there has been a breakthrough in the tortuous public sector wage negotiations or whether another deadlock has been reached. And a deadlock could spell a damaging strike.
As Mugwena Maluleke, convenor of the Cosatu public sector unions has warned: “If the negotiations reach a breaking point, they will severely affect the public in what will follow”.
After seven months of talks, the dispute over future wage increases and benefits for some 1.3 million civil servants is now in conciliation.
The government, as the employer, has until Monday to table revised proposals. These seem likely to include a pay deal that will take account of increases in the rate of inflation beyond the present estimate of 4.8%.
A major sticking point, the employer contribution to medical aid, has already been resolved, but, especially for teachers, the issue of housing remains problematic.
As matters now stand, the majority of teachers earn too much to qualify for state assisted housing, but too little to qualify for a bond.
“They are in a very difficult position,” says National Professional Teachers Organisation president, Basil Manuel.
Maluleke, who is also general secretary of the SA Democratic Teachers’ Union agrees. As a result many teachers are leaving the profession and others are cashing in their pensions in order to resolve their financial problems.
What the unions are hoping for is a package offer that would, in effect, amount to a 7% overall increase.
“We are reasonably confident about a resolution, but we will have to wait until Monday,” says Leon Gilbert of the PSA, the largest independent union in the sector.
