Talks between civil servants and the government over a much needed salary hike once again hit a wall last week. Frustrated union leaders say the measly offer put on the table by stingy officials will do little to lift workers out of poverty.
The Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions says government officials proposed a paltry US$50 cash plus the equivalent of less than US$40 in local currency.
Union boss Cecilia Alexander fumed that the negotiations were “not conclusive” and government negotiators were sent back to consult their penny-pinching masters for a better deal.
Fed up government workers want a minimum of US$560 a month – around the same as a general squatter camp worker. But government bigwigs seem unwilling to budge, hoping its workers will swallow the measly offer of a few bucks.
