Nearly 18 months after restructuring talks started in earnest in the public service, there is still no agreement on how to manage the transfer and retrenchment of redundant staff in the state sector.
This emerged this week after the generous pay award to public servants was announced.
Minister of Public Service and Administration Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi announced a 9% annual wage increase. Public servants were expecting a 7,5% increase. However, this was adjusted for inflation, parti-cularly of food costs.
The pay deal represents a marked departure from the past three years, where Fraser-Moleketi’s attempts to hold down wages sparked disputes — and, in one case, a public service strike.
National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) spokesperson Moloantoa Malaba revealed that a restructuring agreement had been reached between some public service unions, including Nehawu, the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union and the government six weeks ago.
However, it had since then been rejected by a majority of the unions in the bargaining council, including the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union.
Unions have consistently claimed they accepted the need for restructuring. However, they have never clearly endorsed retrenchments.
The government has been pushing for a deal since last year’s public service job summit, arguing that job flexibility and some retrenchments as a last resort are essential to cutting costs and improving efficiency in public service.
Malaba said the Congress of South African Trade Unions was expected to take the initiative in addressing the concerns of some unions about the agreement.
He said most of the objecting unions feared they would end up accepting wholesale retrenchments.
Asked whether the government was hoping to secure a restructuring deal through the “sweetener” of higher wages, Malaba said the government should rather concentrate on establishing trust with the disagreeing unions.
The Department of Public Service and Administration was not available for comment.