… after their tough ultimatum demanding a 25 percent wage hike deal by tomorrow
Mathatisi Sebusi
Minister of Public Services, Steven Mputi, says the government has not abandoned its commitments to civil servants but requires time to consider their wage demands.
The minister spoke to the Lesotho Times in the wake of this week’s tough ultimatum by the civil servants for the government to sign an agreement to hike their wages by 25 percent in the upcoming 2024/25 financial year or face unspecified consequences.
Minister Mputi said he had asked for a postponement of a 12 January 2024 meeting with the civil servants to discuss their wage demands to give him and the Minister of Finance and Development Planning Retṧelisitsoe Matlanyane a chance to discuss the best way to address their grievances.
He said the civil servants had already presented their wage demands in their previous meetings with him.
“The government is currently studying their presentation to assess the feasibility of their wage demands….,” the minister said.
“This is an issue that needs to be handled with maximum care… Basotho know about the dire status of the country’s economy, and the difficulties in absorbing the asked for quantum of the wage hike….
“All we have asked for is a postponement to give the finance minister and myself a chance to carefully scrutinise the matter,” he said.
Minister Mputi spoke after the civil servants issued a tough ultimatum on Monday for the government to sign an agreement to increase their salaries by 25 percent in the upcoming 2024/2025 financial year.
The ultimatum was announced by the Coalition of Lesotho Public Employees (COLEPE) at a press conference in Maseru on Monday.
The coalition consists of Lesotho Police Staff Association (LEPOSA), Lesotho Public Service Staff Association (LEPSSA), Lesotho Association of Teachers (LAT), Lesotho Teachers Trade Union (LTTU), Lesotho Nurses Association (LNA), Qiloane Nursing Assistants Association (QNAA) and Lesotho Schools Principals Association (LeSPA).
COLEPE claimed the government had reneged on a February 2023 agreement to adjust their salaries by the demanded figure.
Addressing the press briefing, LAT’s Secretary General, Letsatsi Ntsibulane, said they informed Prime Minister Sam Matekane about their grievances when he first assumed office in late 2022. He said they notified him that the 25 percent demand had been outstanding from the financial year 2021/2022.
According to Mr Ntsibulane, the premier had made a commitment to look into their demand so that the increment could be budgeted and implemented in the 2024/2025 financial year.
“Following the meetings with the government, represented by then Minister of Public Service (Richard Ramoeletsi) and the Prime Minister in February last year, the government said it would not be able to offer the 25 percent salary increment at the time, owing to the government’s dry purse.
“Mr Matekane, however made a commitment to employ strategies which would revive and increase revenues for the government in the 2023/2024 financial year so that the government could be able to attend to our grievances in this upcoming fiscal year,” he said.
Mr Ntsibulane said the government had even established a Public Sector Bargaining Council for negotiations and bargaining in preparation for the salary increment.
He said the Council and COLEPE started dialoguing in December last year. COLEPE had explained why they were demanding a 25 percent wage increment. He claimed both parties came to an agreement that the 25 percent demand was justifiable, considering the escalating inflation.
He said as per the agreement between the Council and COLEPE, negotiations on the salary increment were supposed to have been finalised on 12 January 2024 so an agreement could be signed on 19 January 2024.
However, the 12 January meeting did not materialise and the only explanation they got from the government was that ministers were “busy on the issue” and would only be able to meet them on 19 January 2024.
“The Council had promised to table our discussions to the government, and we had agreed to meet on 12 January 2024 to finalise the negotiations and sign the salary increment agreement on 19 January 2024.
“Now the government has denied itself a chance to negotiate the salary increment. We are no longer open for negotiations. On Friday we expect a signed 25 percent salary increment agreement and nothing less,” Mr Ntsibulane said.
He said if the government fails to sign the 25 percent increment agreement by tomorrow, they would then announce their way forward.
Minister Mputi insisted the government had merely asked for the postponement of the 12 January meeting. It had not abandoned the negotiations and was committed to reaching an understanding with the civil servants, he added.
