The government has promised to review salaries of civil servants in September while also committing to consider increasing the United States dollar component, following a meeting with their representatives in Harare on Monday.
Civil servants representatives announced an industrial action last week citing paltry salaries.
During yesterday’s meeting, attended by Finance minister Professor Mthuli Ncube and his labour counterpart Paul Mavhima yesterday, government said it treated the welfare of civil servants as a priority.
“The government will however review the situation in September to see if there is scope to increase the USD and as well the ZWL components premised on revenue inflows,” he said.
Leader of the civil servants unions umbrella body, the Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (ZCSPTU), Cecilia Alexander had submitted a list of their demands including USD salaries and implementation of non-salary benefits among others.
Alexander also raised the issue of civil servants representatives in the governance of the Government Employees Mutual Savings Funds (GEMS) and Pension Funds and the need for a universal medical allowance for all civil servants.
On GEMS and Pension Schemes, Mavima promised to look at the workers’ concerns.
This meeting was called by the government ministers to negotiate civil servants welfare demands after unions left the negotiating forum dismissing it wastage of time and resources as the government gave a deaf to their demands.
