ZIMBABWE’s government on Thursday awarded its civil servants pay rises of up to 90% pay in a bid to avert a strike. Acting Public Service and Labour minister, John Nkomo made the announcement after emergency talks with leaders of the 155000 government workers who threatened to strike if demands for a 150% pay hike were not met. Nkomo said the increases of between 69 and 90% on a sliding scale is an attempt to cushion the civil servants from the economic crisis facing the country. The Zimbawe Teachers Association (ZIMTA), the largest public service group, described the offer as a “progressive development.”
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