Workers unimpressed with budget

By Patrick Jaramogi

The National Budget frame work paper for the 2012/13 fiscal years is centred on improving the delivery of social services, especially under the education, health and water sectors to ensure that quality human resources are developed and engaged in the economy.

But as demand for quality human resource hits fever high across the country, expectations of salary increase is not forthcoming according to the 2012-13 fiscal budget.

The 2012-13 fiscal budget has allocated sh290b to cater for enhancement of public service salaries. The budget is in a phased manner with emphasis on teachers and scientists.

The budget frame work paper has provided funds for a slight pay rise to public servants. The frame work paper indicates a 15% salary pay-rise for scales U7- U8 (including primary school teachers) 8% increase for those in the U6- U4, category and a 6% payrise for the civil servants under the U3-U1.

University lecturers will have a 10% pay rise in the next budget according to the budget framework paper as well as an additional 30% allocated to science teachers in universities and Post Primary institutions.

But despite request for increased recruitment to meet the demand gap, the budget for 2012-13 has no room for any recruitment in the public service of local government.

This comes at a time when the Government is facing numerous demands for salary enhancement from various sections of the public service.

“The sharp increase in the cost of living, coupled with high levels of inflation and sky rocketing food commodity prices have eroded the purchasing power of public servants,” says Wilson Usher Owere the National Organisation of Trade Unions (NOTU) chairman general.

He points out that the big challenges arise out of low remuneration which leads to low morale at the work place, staff absenteeism as workers seek alternative means of survival leading to inefficiency at the work place.

“Current statistics indicate that Uganda is losing intellectuals to greener pastures elsewhere. Government is not doing much for workers because the political will is still lacking,” he said.

Owere says to avoid mayhem, the promise to increase teachers’ salaries must be implemented this financial year.

“We demand a salary increment for all civil servants, teachers, nurses, doctors, policemen, prison warders and others. For the last five years workers have been waiting as the Government puts a lot of money in infrastructure development like roads, electricity and others,” he urged.

The Uganda National Teachers Union (UNATU) general secretary, Teopista Birungi Mayanja, said the pay rise requested by teachers is not an offer as the Government assumes but a right.

“We want nothing less than a 100% salary increment as per our negotiations during the strike,” she said.

Birungi noted that the country is set to suffer a decline in its education system as the morale of teachers has consistently reduced due to poor pay and government threats.

Owere said increasing workers’ salaries will enhance motivation and support the developments that the Government is undertaking.

“We welcome government’s move to allow five workers’ representatives back on the Board of NSSF but we have refused the committee appointed by Ministry of Finance to discuss liberalisation of pension and NSSF,” said Owere.

Owere pointed out that as workers’ representatives, they would like NSSF to transform the lives of workers in as many ways as possible.

Owere said the absence of an operational Industrial Court has led to illegal industrial actions as there is no other alternative to settling deadlocked social dialogue.

Sister Edith Nassuna, the general secretary, Ugandan Nurses Union says increasing nurses pay is long overdue. “Nurses are sidelined because they don’t have the necessary negotiating power. We demand a pay rise to meet our accommodation, transport to work place even and safety while handling sensitive cases,” said Nassuna.