12 Apr 2016

The Public Service Bargaining Council (PSBC) is charged with issues affecting public service welfare, including awarding salary adjustments.

Justice Harold Ruhukya of the Industrial Court said on Monday April 11 when delivering an interim judgement, in which the Botswana Federation of Public Sector Unions (BOFEPUSU) had taken the Director of Public Service Management (DPSM) to court over the recent awarding of a three per cent pay rise for public officers.

 BOFEPUSU wanted the court to declare the increment unlawful accusing the government of not bargaining in good faith as well as to interdict the increment.  Justice Ruhukya said the PSBC was the only forum in which issues affecting public service welfare were addressed.

He said contrary to the defendants assertion, the PSBC was not defunct and that parties to the bargaining council were obliged to its terms.He said the decision to award the increase to the public service by the DPSM constituted failure to bargain in good faith.

He said bargaining in good faith under the prevailing circumstances would suggest that the status quo relating to the conditions of the public service be left as it was until the Court of Appeal determines issues affecting the bargaining council.

Justice Ruhukya said DPSM could not continue to pay the public service a salary increase based on a decision which has been found to be unlawful.  “That being so, it is my finding that given that the decision to award three per cent increase has been found, in these circumstance, to have been unlawful, the first respondent (DPSM) cannot be allowed to continue to effect the said award to the public service in subsequent months,” he said.
 

Justice Ruhukya added that if officials could be instructed to input data to increase salaries, the same officials could be instructed to input data to return the public service salaries to the position pre 1 April, noting that from May the situation would be as it was before the increment.

Furthermore, Justice Ruhukya said the applicants have succeeded in establishing urgency as well as satisfying the requirements for the interim relief. According to the interim order, non-unionised employees would be allowed to oppose the applicant’s application, and that the applicants were expected to file their replying affidavits not later than 21 April. ENDS