A year after government decided to abolish the Computer Services Department and the Mechanism Department under the Ministry of ICT and Ministry of Agriculture respectively, some of the affected employees are still out of work and have not received their terminal benefits. When these departments were abolished, the employees were informed that they would be transferred to the Royal Science and Technology Park (RSTP) and the National Maize Corporation (NMC). Some of the employees were not transferred to these new workstations and they did not receive their terminal benefits. It is worth noting that the employees who were left out are those who are members of the National Public Service and Allied Workers Union (NAPSAWU) and were represented by same in the negotiations, while those who got to negotiate with government directly were transferred. One of the affected employees is Christopher Mavuso who was heading the Cyber Security Division at Computer Services and had served government for 17 years. It is worth noting that Mavuso was a shop steward for NAPSAWU at his workplace and hence opted for the union to negotiate with government on his behalf. He lamented at how they were labelled as “thick headed” for asking the union to represent them in the negotiations and consequently, to this day, they are out of work and have not received any terminal benefits. Mavuso added that the union approached the Industrial Court on the matter and an order was issued instructing government to hold proper consultations with the affected employees which has not happened. A meeting between government and representatives of the affected employees was scheduled for the 7th of October but did not take off and no alternative date has been set. Mavuso stated that he was persuaded by these circumstances to then send a WhatsApp voice note to the Deputy Prime Minister Themba Masuku lamenting about the situation and asking for his intervention.
Sourced from: Times of Eswatini 28 November 2022
Nov 28 2022 5:03PM