The Management of the North West Department of Health and the leadership of National Education, Health and Allied Workers' Union (NEHAWU) have just come out of a meeting which discussed the demands put forward by the Community Health Workers following a strike which is now in its second day. The meeting was held in the Provincial Office of the Department of Health in Mahikeng at 9am this morning.
Amongst the issues that NEHAWU and the Community Health Workers (CHWs) were demanding to be resolved is:
- Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF)
- Skills Development for CHWs
- Payment of Stipend
- Outsourcing
- Permanent Employment of CHWs
The department would like to state that all these issues are receiving attention following a number of previous meetings in which the department made a commitment to address them. On the issue of UIF, the MEC, Dr Magome Masike had directed the CFO of the department to investigate the matter and ensure that UIF is resolved and the Department of Labour informed of the resolution. In the case the department can report that this matter has been resolved.
NEHAWU was also briefed to the fact that Skills Development is part of the CHWs employment contracts. To this effect, a report has been compiled detailing all the trainings conducted for our CHWs. The union will be furnished with the copy of the training report.
On payment of stipend, the MEC Dr Magome Masike made a commitment in the last Budget Speech to increase the stipend from R1 500 to R2 000 effective from June 2015. This undertaking has since been implemented even though NEHAWU is still indicating that they are not pleased with the amount.
To this end, the department has indicated that this stipend is reviewed annually as per determination made by the Minister of Labour. Once the Minister of Labour has made a determination, the MEC for Health in the Province, Dr Magome Masike will announce the amount by which the increase will be made in the Budget Speech of the department.
When coming to the issue of outsourcing, the department can confirm that the CHWs contracts are signed between themselves and the department. Their stipend is also paid by the department. Permanent employment of CHWs is a national determination and the Province is seeking national direction on how to approach this matter.
Any decision on this matter will also have to take into account the current fiscal challenges facing the department, the Province and the whole public service sector. The current salary bill of the department is now standing at 66% from 61% in the previous years.
The ideal norm is for the wage bill to be less than 60%.
Considering that the stipends of Community Health Workers (CHWs) amounts to just above R1 billion, absorbing them into permanent position will mean further bloating of the personnel budget. It is for this reason that the department will seek to be adviced and consult extensively guided by a national determination and current fiscal implications before any decision on this matter is arrived at.
However, the department remains open to a dialogue to the union leaders to resolve this matter. The North West Department of Health MEC, Dr Magome Masike is calling on Community Health Workers (CHWs) to go back to work while negotiations continue.
Enquiries:
Tebogo Lekgethwane
Cell: 082 929 9958
E-mail: tlekgethwane@nwpg.gov.za
