HOSPERSA ACCEPTS PUBLIC SERVICE SALARY INCREASE OFFER
HOSPERSA ACCEPTS PUBLIC SERVICE SALARY INCREASE OFFER
23 July 2021
Hospersa, acting jointly with the National Teachers Union (NATU), has accepted the latest wage increase offer in the public service. The Union received a mandate from its members to sign Government’s final offer which includes a 1,5% salary increase and a non-pensionable cash allowance ranging from R1 220.00 to R1 695.00 which will be backdated from 1 April 2021. Hospersa has noted that the offer is below what its members would ordinarily accept but weighed it against the country’s current economic climate and the fact that majority of its members are health workers who continue to stand on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 09 July 2021, the Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) held a Council meeting to discuss wage negotiations in the public sector for the year 2021/22. In this meeting, Government tabled its final offer which includes a 1,5% wage increase and a non-pensionable cash allowance starting from R1 220.00 for the lowest paid employees (level 1) to R1 695.00 for the highest paid employees (level 12). The non-pensionable cash allowance will be backdated from 1 April 2021. At the PSCBC, Hospersa has a working together agreement with the National Teachers Union (NATU) and have a joint representation of close to 100 000 public service employees.
“Upon receiving the final offer, Hospersa took it to its members to seek a mandate on whether to accept it or not,” said Hospersa General Secretary Noel Desfontaines. “This week, the Hospersa National Executive Committee (NEC) confirmed that majority of our members have accepted the offer and the Union must sign the tabled agreement,” added Desfontaines.
Hospersa has also highlighted that while majority of its members have accepted Government’s final offer, it is mindful that the offer is less than what its members would ordinarily accept. However, signing this agreements on the back of the country’s struggling economy outweighs the losses they would make by waiting any longer for an increase or even participating in any industrial action to force Government to improve on the current offer.
“Our members have been working under immense pressure caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and deserve even more than what Government has put on the table,” said Desfontaines. “Their acceptance of Government’s final offer proves that they can no longer wait for a salary increase especially noting their last increase was in 2019. Furthermore, the prospect of the country’s economic climate improving anytime soon is quite low following a slow vaccination programme, persisting lockdown regulations and the recent unrest in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal,” argued Desfontaines.
“As a result, we concur with our members that the gains made by accepting this offer outweighs the losses they would incur from further delays in salary increases or even participating in industrial action to try and force government to improve on its final offer,” concluded Desfontaines.
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