By Mbekezeli Ncube
BULAWAYO-The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) has criticised Government’s decision to pay civil servants’ bonuses in instalments, insisting that workers should receive the full amount as a 13th cheque equivalent to a month’s salary.
The ARTUZ statement comes after the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC) announced the bonus payment arrangements yesterday, following assurances by Finance Minister Professor Mthuli Ncube that Government would have no difficulty paying civil servants their bonuses.
The NJNC announced civil servants will receive their 2026 annual bonuses in two equal instalments in November and December, while Government pensioners are set to receive a cushioning allowance next month.
However, ARTUZ President, Obert Masaraure said the staggered payment arrangement was unacceptable, arguing that workers had financial obligations which required them to receive their earnings in full.
“The practice of paying bonuses in instalments is unacceptable and undermines the dignity of civil servants. Workers have families to feed, school fees to pay, rent to meet and basic necessities to purchase. These obligations cannot be staggered to suit the convenience of the employer,” Masaraure said in a statement.
He argued that a bonus was traditionally an additional month’s remuneration paid at the end of the year and should therefore reflect the value of a full month’s salary rather than being reduced to smaller instalments.
“A bonus is a 13th cheque. It is an additional month’s remuneration traditionally paid to workers at the end of the year. Therefore, this year’s bonus must reflect the value of a full month’s salary and must not be reduced to a token payment or fragmented into staggered instalments,” said Masaraure.
Masaraure further accused Government of celebrating bonus payments while neglecting the salaries that sustain civil servants throughout the year, saying the annual benefit could not compensate for prolonged salary stagnation.
“It is contradictory for the Government to celebrate the payment of bonuses while neglecting the salaries that workers depend on throughout the year. A bonus cannot compensate for three years of salary stagnation. Neither can it resolve the crisis of low wages and deteriorating living standards facing civil servants,” he said.
Masaraure also called for meaningful collective bargaining between Government and workers’ representatives, maintaining that civil servants deserved decent remuneration and improved working conditions.
