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BL Premium reports that President Cyril Ramaphosa has come under fire by disgruntled labour federations after he signed off on 3% wage increase for public office bearers (POBs) including judges, cabinet ministers, MPs and traditional leaders.
The POBs, including and their deputies, are among the most highly paid officials in the country, taking home more than R1m per annum and enjoy perks including travel allowances, security and generators in their state-supplied housing. In a statement at the weekend, the presidency said Ramaphosa had made a determination to increase salaries of all public office bearers by 3%, with effect from 1 April 2022. The Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers had recommended a 3.8% salary increment, while Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana had proposed a 1.5% increase plus a one-off cash gratuity. Cosatu’s Matthew Parks characterised the 3% wage increase as a “tone deaf and embarrassing decision” by Ramaphosa. He said load-shedding, the rising cost of living, corruption and a stagnant economy have all happened under the watch and leadership of political office bearers and stressed: “They do not deserve the packages they currently earn let alone an increase in their salaries.” Saftu’s Trevor Shaku rejected the increase because POBs already earn “obscene salaries”; and “in the context of the damage they have caused (and are still causing) to our country, these public office bearers do not deserve any increase”. Nactu’s Narius Moloto said the wage increase was a “spit in the face of the poor” as POBs were already living large and were not affected by the rising cost of living. Fedusa’s Riefdah Ajam noted that SA was close to a dysfunctional state and concluded that the question whether the office bearers deserved an increase was moot when weighing such factors.
- Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Luyolo Mkentane at BusinessLive (subscriber access only)
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