Workers groups affiliated to the Zimbabwe Confederation of Public Sector Trade Unions (ZCPSTU), have resolved to go on strike for two days over low pay and poor working conditions.
The workers also resolved to stage a crippling strike in September if the government does not address their grievances following the two-day industrial action next week.
In a statement ZCPSTU said, “… All the federations that organise in the Public Sector, namely FEUZ, FOZEU (Federation of Zimbabwe Educators Union), NFoZ and PSA (Public Service Association) resolved that civil servants in the health, education and rest of the civil service will proceed to a national 2-day strike on Wednesday 27 July 2022 and Thursday 28 July 2022. That the 2-day work stoppage will be peremptory to a longer action in September, in the event that the employer does not meet our demands.”
They demanded that the government should restore of the value of their wages to pre-October 2018 levels, to be paid in United States and not in Zimbabwe dollars with immediate effect.
They also urged the government to “stop to the wave of suspensions, summary dismissals, illegal disallowances and victimisation of teachers and nurses for exercising their constitutional right to organise and to a fair and reasonable wage.”
ZCPSTU noted that the government should “pay medical allowances to all civil servants without discrimination, desist from the bashing of union leadership for exercising their representative roles as messengers of their voiceless membership; and speedily implement all collective agreements fully as in school fees payment for the children of educators, regrading and performance advancement.”
Takavafira Zhou of the Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe told Studio 7 that should take quick measures to address their grievances to avert a crippling industrial strike.
Public Service Commission secretary, Jonathan Wutawunashe, was unavailable for comment.