Public servants are ‘paid very well’, with benefits, say analysts

Apart from asking for an above-inflation wage increase, experts say yesterday’s public service strike was not only a mockery to the private sector but to South Africa’s economic climate – as analysts argue remuneration was very healthy compared to the private sector.

Revised offer

Members of seven unions which are part of the largest labour federations – Congress of SA Trade Unions (Cosatu), the SA Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu), and the Federation of Unions SA (Fedusa) – embarked on a national one-day strike in eight provinces, demanding a 10% salary increase.

Government’s revised offer is 7.5%.

Expert weighs in

Chief economist at Econometrix Azar Jammine said while National Treasury still had room to concede to the wage demands, “to demand 10% is to try and compensate for not getting substantial pay increases in the past couple of years to try and catch up from that.

“Now, in the past couple of years, of course, government employees have not done too well.

“But one needs to go back a little further to between around 2009 and 2016, [when] public service remuneration rates increased a lot more deeply than those in the private sector, so you know, it depends on where you, where your starting point is.

“And if you take the starting point in 2010, then public service remuneration is still very healthy, if you obviously look from for the last three years.”

‘Public servants are well paid’ with numerous benefits

Labour consultant Tony Healy said public servants were paid very well, as they have had a number of above-inflation increases, while they enjoy numerous provident fund and medical aid benefits.

“Many would argue that 10% is too much and public sector workers have had a good ride when it comes to remuneration and benefits on increases over many years,” he added.

Consequences of strike action

Meanwhile, Fedusa representative Waheed Hoosen said last week the government knew the consequences a strike of yesterday’s magnitude would have on the country.

Jammine said the country would only feel the consequences of the strike if it generated into a more, long-lasting strike, but “we can also argue that in fact service [is] still so inefficient in many ways that in many areas there will really not be a huge impact”.

He added: “A public service strike is unlikely to stop the economy very much because clearly a lot of the work that is done in the public service can simply be delayed by a day.

“Some people in the private sector will argue that we should not exaggerate the impact of the strike on the economy because what does the public service do anyway?

“The really useful parts of the public service are still going to be functioning in terms of, just the educational sector. But the areas where they have gone on strike are in the public services that are not necessarily absolutely urgent, like home affairs.”

Healy said there were a host of areas which were run by government where the benefits would increase automatically if handed over to the private sector to run.

“It would be much more efficient and cost effective,” he said.

Memorandum and threats

The Public Servants’ Association (PSA) handed a memorandum of demands to National Treasury during their march two weeks ago and did the same yesterday.

The unions have threatened to intensify demonstrations in the public service and considering marches to ministers’ homes.

ALSO READ: Public sector strike: ‘We will do what we can to get them to recognise us’

– reitumetsem@citizen.co.za