BURS Workers Break Bank After Big Payout
Monkagedi Gaothobogwe | Monday January 23, 2017 17:37
Spearheaded by BOPEU, the single union that oversaw the bargaining process with BURS, the lowest band, cleaners, night watchmen, grounds men, and drivers walked home with 10-12% basic salary increase, while assistant officers got a 10% increase on their basic salaries. Principal officers, senior officers and entry level officers got between seven to nine percent increase on their basic salaries.
The bargaining exercise also concluded that the basic salaries will annually be increase by 10%, depending on an individual’s performance, as both parties agreed to do away with incremental notches.
The principal officers also won themselves the rights to gadgets as well as P160 monthly airtime for their gadgets, backdated to July 2016.
There was more to cheer for the BURS employees, as principal officers and senior officers walked home with a five percent market parity allowance, as well as 15% attraction allowance for information technology, IT auditing, legal services personnel at principal officer and senior officer level.
The night watchmen also had something to cheer after working days were increased to 26 days a month translating to improved pay, with an excess of 208 hours a month earning the night watchmen overtime payment at 1.5 rate, or double rate if they work during rest days and public holidays.
Meanwhile heavy duty and extra heavy duty drivers’ allowances have been increased to 10% and 15% respectively, also with back pays from July 1, 2016.
The bargaining exercise has also seen the workers getting P225 per day as subsistence allowance in lieu of hotel accommodation, while night subsistence allowance rose to P450 per night.
The meal allowances now stands at P150. The changes were also backdated to July 1 last year. There was victory in revision of contract gratuity rate from 25% to 30% for both locals and expatriates, also back-dated to July 2016.
Over and above the abovementioned allowances, BURS employees will continue to rake in 15% monthly housing allowance.The negotiations for salary increment and pay structure review ended bitterly two years ago with the Union party demonstrating their displeasure with a lengthy strike that paralysed key BURS operations.
Of the staff complement of 1,300, about 1,200 are unionised, with BOPEU claiming a chunk of them.