15.6% PAY RISE FOR PUBLIC TRANSPORT WORKERS

MANZINI – Public transport workers are on the verge of getting a salary increment of 15.6 per cent.

This is because, according to the Swaziland Transport Communication and Allied Workers Union (SWATCAWU), the Wages Council for the public transport industry, has reached an agreement about the increment. Those who will benefit are those who work in taxis, kombis, minibuses, buses, and full body trucks. The trade union released a statement through its Acting Secretary General Sticks Nkambule, where it announced that the wages for public transport workers would be increased by 15.6 per cent following a settlement arrived at by Wages Council in January 2022.

Tripartite

According to the acting secretary general of the public transport workers union, the tripartite of the Wages Council started negotiations last year and in the last quarter of the year (around October 2021), they deadlocked. He said as workers’ representatives, their demand was 24 per cent salary increment, but the employers’ final offer was 13 per cent. He said when they deadlocked; they made it clear that they would not settle for anything less than 24 per cent pay rise. He said this was because the public transport workers last got a salary increment in 2017. Thereafter, he said in the absence of a backpay and time value for money rationale, workers made propositions to the council to add 2.16 per cent, in each passed year up to year 2020. He said this added up to 28 per cent, which they proposed to council for adoption.After reaching the deadlock around October 2021, Nkambule said they took the matter to the Ministry of   labour and Social Security, who then referred the matter back to the roundtable. He said indeed the negotiations were reconvened in January 2022 and the employers made an improved offer of 15.6 per cent and stated that they could not afford to offer anything above this.  In return, the unionist said they informed the employers and government that they would accept the 15.6 per cent salary increment under two conditions; that the pay rise was backdated to May 2021.

Negotiations

He said the other condition was that the council sitting should reconvene before or in April 2022, so that they could continue with negotiations, which would be aimed at improving the welfare of public transport workers. He said they were currently awaiting the publishing of a gazette that would confirm their settlement and see it being implemented. Again, Nkambule said among material terms, the settlement included a 30 per cent increase in allowances. He said their demand was that allowances should be increased by 43 per cent. Once more, the unionist said they also agreed that there should be 37 days compassionate leave for widowers, seven days paid compassionate leave for other family members. 

He said the regulation of wages for the bulk vehicle operators was reaffirmed by council as one to conclude this year 2022. Meanwhile, Labour Commissioner Mthunzi Shabangu, who was sought for a comment regarding the developments, said at this stage, the matter was still under the council and he would be out of order if he could talk about it. In fact, the labour commissioner said they had laid down procedures on how issues which were discussed at council level were handed over to his office or the Ministry of Labour and Social Security in general. He said he could only comment about such issues once it had been officially handed over to his office. He emphasised that at this stage, nothing had been officially communicated to his office as it was still at council level.

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