Labour agitations killing investment

The increasing agitations across workers’ union give the impression that the SSPP has not been able to calm nerves for better conditions of service.

A few years ago when the implementation of the SSPP began, the beneficiaries praised the government for mustering the courage to carry out the salary reforms that had helped to enhance the salaries of public sector workers.

It is also public knowledge that the implementation of the SSPP has put undue pressure on the public purse to the extent that more than 60 per cent of national revenue is used on public sector wages.

We know that every day, the government goes through sleepless nights to mobilise the revenue to cater for the wage bill that keeps mounting because more graduates have to be recruited.

In a statement on the planned strike, the doctors said the suspension of the road map, which led to the partial withdrawal of services by doctors on February 1, 2013, would “unfortunately have to be reactivated very soon pending the National Executive Committee of the GMA meeting next week”.

The university teachers and government pharmacists have also threatened industrial action because of what the two groups termed delays in addressing their concerns about conditions of service.

We cannot say that the public institutions charged with dealing with the concerns of public sector workers are not working. Perhaps, their output may not be the best way to resolve the industrial challenges.

The DAILY GRAPHIC appeals to the National Labour Commission (NLC), the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) and the various public sector organisations not to stick to the technicalities of salary administration but remain with the grievance procedure until the differences are resolved.

Oftentimes, the labour unions and the salary administrators, including the government and employers, take entrenched positions just as the labour unions also refuse to ‘bend’, making it difficult to resolve matters at the negotiation table.

The DAILY GRAPHIC is worried about the frequency of strikes and threats of industrial actions, thereby disturbing the otherwise peaceful industrial scene and by extension slowing down the economy.

The investor community is always looking for an environment where their investment will be safe and will not be under threat from labour lockouts.

We cannot deny the right of the latest group of workers from beating the ‘war drums’ as the best way to get their employers to listen to them. However, the doctors, university teachers and the government pharmacists can achieve their goals without necessarily embarking on industrial actions if all the stakeholders respect the procedures for salary administration.

For this reason, the DAILY GRAPHIC urges the university teachers, doctors and the pharmacists to resolve their concerns at the negotiation table as the  industrial action will compound the challenges of our times.

We also appeal to the FWSC and the NLC to do everything within their power to avoid the strike by the three labour unions because their actions will disrupt industrial harmony.