The federation lawyer, Mboki Chilisa, wants the court to set aside this year’s salary hike, declare it null and void and also instruct government to negotiate with recognised unions. BOFEPUSU secretary general, Tobokani Rari said government was bound by law to negotiate salaries and conditions of service through the Public Service Bargaining Council (PSBC). Government announced the three percent across the board increment last Thursday, as the PSBC lies inactive due to a legal challenge centrally pitting the Botswana Public Employees Union (BOPEU) against BOFEPUSU. “The issue is central to the case at the Court of Appeal. One of BOPEU’s prayers in the case, which we are appealing is that they wanted negotiations stopped pending the outcome of the case. The process is incomplete yet, so one cannot say the PSBC is defunct,” he said.
Rari added: “Even if the PSBC has been dismantled, which we disagree with, the employer is bound to engage recognised unions, and as such, there is no reason whatsoever that could have made the employer to unilaterally award a three percent adjustment on their own, except for government’s sheer disregard and disobedience of the existing law”. It is understood that BOFEPUSU has proposed a 13.5 percent salary increment for civil servants under its mandate in the 2016/2017 salary negotiations. BOFEPUSU is also said to have proposed that in the 2016/2017 financial year, a housing allowance of 10 percent be introduced for all public service employees.
