Striking teachers are being harassed and intimidated by security agents, political activists and ministry functionaries. This was revealed by the Zimbabwe Teachers Association (ZIMTA) and the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) in a joint statement released on Thursday 7th February 2019. Members of the two unions have been on strike for the third day now.
Progress on industrial action
A joint statement updating members on progress on the ongoing strike by ZIMTA and PTUZ claim 80% of their members have joined the strike. However, they lamented harassment allegedly being perpetrated by ministry functionaries, political actors and security agents and that government has not positively responded to their plea for a better salary. ZIMTA and PTUZ declared, “1. The industrial action (strike) intensifies tomorrow the 8th of February and we call upon all our members not to set foot at schools.
- We call upon all our members to report any form of intimidation to their respective unions.
- We would like to warn the Government not to send any functionaries to harass members who are taking part in lawful industrial action.
- If harassment continues we will not hesitate to take legal and other actions to protect the rights of our members locally and internationally.”
If these allegations are anything to go by, government seems to be running out of viable options. Just recently, the junior doctors’ strike dragged on for 40 days as meeting after meeting failed to find common ground and the patients in hospitals suffered. Is government playing the same game?
The truth
As with the junior doctors’ strike, a lot of misinformation is creeping in. The Public Service Commission (PSC) argues that negotiations with the Apex Council are continuing and no deadlock has been declared hence there is no strike to talk about. “However, the Commission has since been made aware of the isolated cases of absconding by a minority of teachers… Accordingly and in keeping with applicable regulations, the Commission advises members that unauthorised non-attendance at workstations will result in corresponding deductions from the salaries of offending individuals on the basis of the principle of “No work, No Pay,” says the PSC.
Their view is that it is the unions who are coercing teachers to withdraw their labour. We are not sure which statement to believe but clearly, this may take time to sort out. When salaries do come with deductions, the situation is likely to worsen. This happened with the junior doctors too. Moreover, the PSC is talking to the Apex Council and not to the teachers in particular, so, the teachers’ issues may be ignored.
Blame games aside, the teachers’ plight needs to be looked into fairly. Parents who paid huge amounts in school fees are justifiably worried that their children are getting a raw deal. Something must be done before it’s too late.
