Teachers unions are mounting more pressure on the department of education (DoE) to sign off collective agreement number four of the occupation-specific dispensation (OSD), with South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (Sadtu) giving them a deadline for this Friday.
The collective agreement, which Sadtu said it is ready to sign, covers key issues that were at the heart of teacher unions’ concerns.
Negotiations between the parties took longer to conclude and teacher unions blame the delay on the DoE. With all major teacher unions frustrated by the lack of progress in the negotiations, it is feared the unions may embark on a full-blown national strike.
Sadtu’s acting general secretary, Mugwena Maluleke, said: ”since the beginning of July there has not been any progress because the DoE said it was still going to seek a mandate. To date there has not been any significant progress which is why we wrote them a letter demanding that they should table a report this Friday.”
He said if there is still no progress they would seek guidance from their members to decide on the next course of action.
The collective agreement addresses the following major issues:
- Recognition of experience — where teachers with experience would be rewarded with one salary notch for every three years worked.
- Salary progression and accelerated salary progression — where teachers will get 3% salary progression pay backdated to 1 July 2009.
- Improvement of conditions of service for the so-called under-qualified teachers who are currently earning a minimum of R50 000 and are going to get R95 000.
- Senior and master teachers — teachers who would have qualified for grade progression to become senior and master teachers in line with collective agreement of 2006 will receive a once-off cash bonus of 3% of the annual salary notch.
Meanwhile a revised salary structure for employees not covered by OSD has been signed at the Public Service Co-coordinating Bargaining Council. Employees who would benefit from the agreement are labourers, groundsmen and administrative staff. The deal also addresses career-pathing and grade progression model.
Career-pathing would be based on availability of posts, follow the approved recruitment and selection processes, performance, continuous years of service in the public service and change in the scope of work.
Grade Progression would focus on posts that are graded on the basis of outcome of job evaluation, recognition of performance and completed continuous years of service on a salary level irrespective of the notch.
The model would be structured in such a way that it revises salary levels from level one to level 12. These would be implemented from 1 April 2009.