Thousands of teachers cry foul over salary :: Mmegi Online

Multitudes of teachers are embittered by the employer’s decision to credit non-taxed backpays thereafter deducting tax from their October salaries without prior communication. Thousands of teachers are walking home with a take home salary of close to nothing following this development.

The state of affairs is a manifestation of the protracted battle between the Botswana Federation of Public Private Parastatals Sector Union (BOFEPUSU) and government over the three percent salary hike for financial year 2016/17 and the subsequent four percent awarded in the period 2017/18, which trade unions rejected arguing that government acted unilaterally to hike salaries. While other members of the civil service received the increment, those affiliated to the federation went for months without the same.

This June, the parties settled for a consent order before Justice Tshepho Motswagole, agreeing that the government should pay the BOFEPUSU members the three and four percent increase awarded to other public workers for financial year 2016/17 and 2017/18.