By Almot Maqolo
Harare, Zimbabwe (News of The South) – Zimbabwe on Wednesday said that the USD75 Covid-19 allowance will now be paid on pay days in an attempt to end teacher’s strike which threatens to derail the impending examinations.
Schools re-opened on September 28 for exam sitting classes. Other classes will re-open on October 26 and November 9 in a separate return to normalcy after schools were closed in March following an outbreak of the coronavirus.
Teachers are doing demanding salaries equivalent to US$520. However, teachers in Zimbabwe vowed to continue their strike against the 40% increment in salaries of teachers offered by the employer last week, which they consider below their actual needs.
The pay offer saw teacher’s salaries go up from ZWL$3,500 to about ZWL$5,000 (US$61).
Public Service Commission (PSC) Secretary Ambassador Jonathan Wutawunashe said the Covid-19 allowance is being paid today.
“Going forward, the USD75 Covid-19 allowance will be paid on pay days. This effectively means that the least paid worker (B1) is now earning ZWL$11 350.15 monthly, while a teacher at entry grade (D1) earns a total of ZWL$12 591.15,” he said.
The USD75 allowance is indexed to the prevailing RBZ foreign exchange auction rate. (US$1: 81.348 Zimbabwean Dollars).
He said: “Government would like to record its appreciation for civil servants in all categories who continue to render services to the citizens of Zimbabwe.”
The Government is committed to continuously improve the working conditions of civil servants and hopes that negotiations in the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC) to further improve emoluments for civil servants will be concluded soon, he added.
Recently, the southern African nation warned that they could exclude thousands of teachers who are boycotting work in pay dispute from the payroll.
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