Today's Labour News

newsThis news aggregator site highlights South African labour news from a wide range of internet and print sources. Each posting has a synopsis of the source article, together with a link or reference to the original. Postings cover the range of labour related matters from industrial relations to generalist human resources.

Government stands firm on wage increases, but buckles on welfare grants

Details

southafricalogoBloomberg News reports that in his medium-term budget policy statement presented to MPs on Wednesday, Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana held the line in the government’s efforts to contain the state’s wage bill.

The budget update provides for state personnel costs to rise by an average 3.3% over the next three fiscal years, less than half the projected inflation rate for this year, and identifies higher wage settlements as an ongoing risk to the fiscal outlook. The wage bill accounts for 31% of total government expenditure and keeping it in check is key to the Treasury’s plans to rein in the budget deficit and bring runaway state debt under control. Pay talks between the government and unions representing its 1.3 million workers have currently deadlocked, and about 235,000 of them affiliated with the Public Servants Association are set to go on strike from 3 November. The government has offered to pay 3% raises and a R1,000 monthly cash allowance, while unions are demanding increases of between 6.5% and 10%. But, Godongwana bowed to public pressure to extend the social relief of distress (SRD) grant that was introduced in 2020 to cushion the poor against the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. He increased the projected spending for social grants by R36 billion, which will enable the welfare department to extend the monthly R350 SRD grant until March 2024.

  • Read the full original of the report in the above regard by S'thembile Cele at Moneyweb
  • Read too, SRD grant extended for another year, but solution must be found, says Godongwana, at Fin24
  • And also, Social relief of distress grant extended for another year, at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)


Get other news reports at the SA Labour News home page