Civil servants' salary talks resume

STALLED salary negotiations between the Government and civil servants, which the latter had called off over lack of progress, will resume on Wednesday, a Cabinet Minister has said.

Citing the lack of progress, civil Servants had walked away from the talks led by the Ministry of Public Service and Labour, and resolved instead to approach President Emmerson Mnangagwa directly to break the impasse.

In an interview, Public Service and Labour Minister Prof Paul Mavima said the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC), the umbrella forum for the talks, would resume the negotiations this week.

"Salaries are reviewed on a quarterly basis, so they are meeting on Wednesday as NJNC," he said.

Pressed to disclose what the government was bringing to the table, Prof Mavima was tight-lipped. "It's a negotiation. The Government will offer something obviously," he said.

In the past, civil servants were demanding a salary of around US$540 per month for their lowest-paid members, a demand the government has consistently said it could not afford.

Instead, the government is paying all civil servants an allowance of US$200 per month, in addition to their salaries pegged in the local currency depending on grade.