AGREEMENT REACHED IN THE PUBLIC SERVICE BARGAINING COUNCIL

STATEMENT BY MS SANKIE MTHEMBI-NKONDO, ACTING MINISTER FOR THE PUBLIC SERVICE AND ADMINISTRATION ON AN AGREEMENT REACHED WITHIN THE CENTRAL CHAMBER OF THE PUBLIC SERVICE BARGAINING COUNCIL ON IMPROVEMENTS IN CONDITIONS OF SERVICE FOR THE CURRENT FINANCIAL YEAR

Issued by: Ministry for Public Service and Administration

25 May 1995

It is with great pleasure that I announce that after 10 months of negotiations in the Central Chamber an agreement was finally reached on 23 May 1995 on improvements in conditions of service for the current financial year. In short the contents of the agreement entails the following:

The adjustment of the five lowest salary notches to R13 200 per annum (i.e. an increase of 22%) with effect from 1 April 1995.
A further improvement of the dispensation for certain of the lower paid personnel in the Public Service with effect from 1 July 1995.
A general salary increase with effect from 1 July 1995 above the new minimum wage of R13 200 per annum scaling down to a 5% increase as from the salary notch R24 630 to the salary notch R107 019. A further scaling down to a 4% increase on the salary notch R126 411, whereafter no further increase is granted. Personnel on the levels of Chief Director, Deputy Director-General, Director-General and personnel on equivalent ranks will receive no increase.
An understanding that the participation of married woman in the home owner allowance scheme must be addressed by the State as a matter of urgency. Adjustments to the applicable measures in the current financial year must be negotiated in the Central Chamber of the Public Service Bargaining Council.
The extension of the home owner allowance scheme to single employees without dependants.
An extension of the night duty allowance and the introduction of an uniform tariff with effect from 1 July 1995 to persons whom perform night duty.
The setting aside of an amount of R31 million to adjust the measures applicable in the Public Service in respect of over- time remuneration. The details of such an adjustment will be negotiated within the financial framework of the R31 million set aside.
Although not part of the improvement plan, the employee organi- sations also took note of the State as employer's commitment to scale down the Public Service. This has to be done within the framework of prescripts currently available for this purpose. The Government and the employee organisations further committed themselves to improve productivity by increasing efficiency and better utilisation of working hours.

The above-mentioned improvement plan is linked to a three year plan. The State commits itself to the provision of sufficient funds for negotiation of phases 2 and 3 of the three year plan. This is to be dealt with within the framework of the investigations of the Task Teams, established pursuant to a meeting with the Deputy Presidents, the Minister for the Public Service and Administration and the presidents of the employee organisations admitted to the Central Chamber of the Public Service Bargaining Council.

The improvements are partially to be funded by reducing the State's contribution ratio to the Government Pension Funds by a factor determined by an actuary to generate the additional funds. The various media reports over the last few weeks in this regard might have created a wrong impression in regard to the factual situation. I would therefore like to put the matter into perspective.

The Government of National Unity (GNU) initially, within severe economic constraints, made an amount of R2 500 million available to be utilised for improvements in conditions of service during the current financial year in both the Public Service and Educator sectors.

Through a process of negotiation with the employee organisations admitted to the Central Chamber of the Public Service Bargaining Council it became clear to the GNU that the amount initially allocated was not sufficient if the most urgent needs were to be addressed.

In an effort to conclude an agreement with the employee organisations the GNU investigated the means through which additional funds could be made available. Within the already mentioned economic constraints the only workable option was to propose a reduction in the State's contribution to the pension funds for the current financial year.

This offer should be viewed against the following background:

The GNU gives a guarantee that members' present and future pension benefits will not be detrimentally affected.
The GNU is further bound by a previous agreement reached with the employee organisations to increase the funding level of the pension funds.
The pension funds should be restructured by negotiations in the Chamber to enhance the return on investment.

These guarantees form part and parcel of the agreement that was reached in the Central Chamber. Even the employee organisations in the Central Chamber of the Public Service Bargaining Council who are not party to the agreement accepted the employer's offer that the improvements should be partially funded by reducing the State's contribution to the pension funds.

I would like to emphasise that, taking into consideration the guarantees being given. Public Servants need not have any fears in regard to the utilisation of the State's contribution to the pension funds for purposes of improving conditions of service in the current financial year. This must be seen as a serious effort on the part of the GNU to accommodate the needs of Public Servants.

To summarise, this agreement must be seen as a confirmation of the commitment of the GNU and the Chamber to the objectives of the RDP. The plight of the lower paid workers was again the focus point and will continue to receive priority attention as part of a three year plan, whilst the needs of higher paid personnel will also be attended to.