Nurses' 30% allowance on the line
Innocent Selatlhwa | Tuesday June 7, 2022 06:00
According to a letter seen by The Monitor from BONU acting secretary-general Kenosi Mogorosi to members, the union continues to receive multiple questions, concerns, and worries from its members and structures regarding the stoppage of the 30% nurse’s commuted overtime allowance as an implication on the ‘Call to Duty’ case judgement.
Justice Galesite Baruti of the Francistown Industrial Court has ruled in favour of nurses over the Call to Duty Policy. Following the failure to reach common ground after engaging the employer, the Department of Labour, and eventually getting a certificate of failure to settle from the Commissioner of Labour, the matter was heard by the Industrial Court to determine the outcome.
The nurses wanted government to discontinue Call to Duty, where they are expected to report to duty when required to do so beyond their working hours. Through BONU, the health workers argued that Call to Duty is illegal, encroaches on nurses’ rest period and exposes them to abuse by the Directorate of Public Service Management.
While government argued that the arrangement is catered for in their fixed 30% overtime allowance, nurses said it is not reason enough as they also work overtime hours.
Justice Baruti ordered that the entire time that nurses and midwives are rostered to be on call constitutes working time for which they must be paid; the time that a nurse or a midwife accompanies a patient on referral from one medical facility to another medical facility and back constitutes working time for which he or she must also be paid.
It is alleged that some ministry officials have informed nursing managers across the country that the outcome of the matter means that nurses are going to lose their commuted overtime allowance and the nurse managers were mandated to alert their subordinates and solicit their contributions.
“It is very unfortunate that MoH officials will deliberately and intentionally twist, manipulate, and misrepresent the truth in order to scare and threaten employees. The Central Executive Committee (CEC) of BONU wishes to categorically state that there has not been any mention of withdrawal or illegality of the nurses’ 30% commuted overtime allowance in the judgement of Justice Baruti,” Mogorosi wrote.
He stated that the nurses’ 30% overtime allowance cannot be stopped willy-nilly, especially by the said officers since it forms part of the Collective Bargaining Agreement of August 27, 2019, and May 7, which is a binding legal document between the Government of Botswana and the six cooperating public sector unions.
Moreover, Mogorosi said nurses should note that the call to duty matter is still active before the courts of law as they were informed that the employer has since appealed it, therefore participating in a forum that seeks to interfere with the case is sub-judice and has exigent and dire consequences.
He further said: “BONU will engage DPSM so that this allegation of unprogressive conduct, neocolonial tendencies, and imperialistic behaviour by some MoH officials is investigated and dealt with. We cannot allow this unlawful, threatening and intimidating behaviour to continue. The rule of law and human rights must be respected. It is therefore shocking to have government officials contravening such by manipulating facts and attempting to disregard the rule of law and denying citizens their rights.”
Mogorosi encouraged BONU members and all nurses to remain calm and resolute as the CEC deals with this matter.
Ministry of Health Chief Public Relations Officer, Christopher Nyanga has since dismissed the claims.
“The ministry has not issued any instruction to its managers to communicate anything in the matter you refer to. As a matter of fact, all our nurses continue to receive all their dues including the 30% commuted overtime allowance, as has been, before the ongoing case. Since the case is ongoing, we are unable at this point to dwell further into its possible implications,” he said.