About 144 agents have taken the Attorney General on behalf of Directorate of Public Service Management (DPSM) to court for reasons that there has been breach of public service regulations. The agents, who say they work through shifts, contend that they have been denied shift allowance despite a 2000 Directive that was issued confirming their entitlement to shift allowance. In Mohlouoa Matseko's founding affidavit, who is leading the agents before court, he says despite being shift workers, they have been denied shift allowance. “Despite working on shift allowance, we have not been paid shift allowance and that is a breach of the Public Service Regulations,” he said. Matseko has explained that in terms of Regulation 9 (5) of the Public Service Regulations that each shift duty shall attract an inconvenience allowance commonly known as ‘shift allowance’ at a rate agreed by collective agreement. He stated that the applicable rate in government as agreed by collective agreements was 15% of one's basic salary. “Despite all this and working on shifts, we have not been paid shift allowance by the respondent.
Consequently, DPSM is in breach of the aforesaid regulation on shift allowance,” Matseko said. Matseko further pointed out that they work on shifts as follows: That from 2010 until 2021, their shift times were from 6am hours to 2pm then 2pm to 10pm and 10pm to 6am. He also said then the shifts were changed from 2021 to date and that the shift times changed to 6am to 6pm and 6pm hours to 6am. Matsheko further stated after that all the applicants before court were never paid their shift allowance. Subsequently, Matseko said they are seeking orders as per their notice of motion among others an order declaring that the respondent is violating Regulation 9 (5) of the Public Service Regulations by not paying them a shift allowance, an order declaring that they are entitled to a shift allowance as per Regulation 9 (5) of the Public Service Regulations. Furthermore, they seek the court to order and direct that the respondent forthwith pays them shift allowance from the date they respectively worked on shifts at the rate of 15% of their basic salary, costs of suit and alternative relief. Meanwhile, the State on the other hand denies any breach of public service regulations and argues that the agents are not entitled to any shift allowance. According to DIS Director Corporate Services, Tsoebebe Mokhosoa, he found nothing in the agents' claim that suggests they are entitled to a shift allowance. “The applicants’ claim is founded on the provisions of Public Service Management Directive No.14 of 2000, which sought to clear any confusion regarding the provisions of Public Service Management Directive No.10 of 1999 on shift allowance,” he said.
