Talks delay irks COLEPE

The prolonged salary negotiations between the government and the Coalition of Lesotho Public Employees (COLEPE) reached a new impasse this week after the ministry of public service proposed to continue discussions on February 1, 2025.

However, COLEPE, the union representing public sector workers, says it is unsatisfied with the proposed timeline, claiming it is merely a delaying tactic by the government.

The unions remain steadfast in their demands for a swift resolution, with the spectre of a potential dispute looming if the government fails to address their grievances.

COLEPE comprises the Lesotho Police Staff Association (LEPOSA), Lesotho Public Service Staff Association (LEPSSA), Lesotho Association of Teachers (LAT), Lesotho Teachers Trade Union (LTTU), Lesotho Nurses Association (LNA), Qiloane Nursing Assistants Association (QINUASA), and the Lesotho Schools Principals’ Association (LESPA).

The unions had written a letter to the minister of public service, Stephen Mputi, requesting him to arrange for negotiations within seven days from last week Wednesday (January 6, 2025).

COLEPE has been pushing for a salary hike since 2022, when they asked for a 25 percent increase in that financial year. They wrote a letter to then prime minister Dr Moeketsi Majoro and later escalated the matter to the current premier Sam Matekane, but with no tangible results to date.

LAT secretary general, Letsatsi Ntsibolane told this publication in a telephonic interview on Wednesday this week that the unions received a response from the ministry stating they would only be available for the negotiations in February 1, 2025.

Ntsibolane said the proposed date was nothing but another delaying tactic, as by that time, there will be almost no time left to make meaningful changes to the upcoming 2025/26 budget, normally announced end of March annually.

He emphasised the precariousness of the budget cycle, noting that any negotiations held this close to the budget allocation process were unlikely to yield any meaningful results.

“The budget cycle is at a critical stage and we fear that the government is deliberately exploiting this to evade negotiations. It is highly unlikely that any agreement reached at this point will have a significant impact on the upcoming budget,” Ntsibolane said, adding that COLEPE members were yet to convene to decide the way forward.

In a recent letter to Mputi, LEPSSA secretary general, Motebang Leboela, on behalf of COLEPE, indicated that the government had taken a step towards resolving the impasse by appointing an arbitrator, Advocate Rethabile Sakoane in June 2024, to facilitate negotiations.

Leboela said the government had stated that the appointment was a demonstration of its commitment to address COLEPE’s salary hike concerns, which were raised in February 2023.

However, COLEPE has expressed skepticism about the government’s sincerity, arguing that the Advocate Sakoane’s appointment was merely a tactic to prolong the process.

According to Leboela, the arbitration process ultimately stalled, despite correspondence from COLEPE in August 2024, and a subsequent response from the ministry of public service in late August the same year.

COLEPE said they have made earnest attempts to engage with the government for years, further accusing the ministry of public service of failing to follow up through on their stated commitment to address the salary negotiations.

The perceived lack of cooperation, they say, deepened the employees’ frustration, contributing to their decision to issue the recent ultimatum.

“We have been working tirelessly to establish meaningful dialogue with government for years but these efforts have been met with frustrating lack of action,” Leboela wrote.

COLEPE noted that despite promising developments including the ratification of Convention 151, the Amendment of the Public Service Act, and the organisation of training programmes for collective bargaining parties, progress towards a resolution has still been unsatisfactory.

The unions also cited the recent study tour to South Africa, which was organised to provide additional guidance on best practices for effective labour negotiations, as a potentially fruitful initiative that was yet to bear fruit.

Furthering their attempts to initiate productive negotiations, COLEPE met with Mputi in December 9, 2024, after the completion of training on collective bargaining procedures with the intention of leveraging the newly acquired skills to move the dialogue.

“It remains our fervent hope that you will prioritise these negotiations in order to safeguard the indelible progress that has been made thus far in terms of collective bargaining training and to avoid any inherent repercussions of dispute declaration,” Leboela wrote.

When contacted for comment yesterday, the public relations officer of the ministry of public service, ‘Mamakhooa Molapo, could not confirm the details of the government’s response to COLEPE’s letter as she is currently on leave,

Molapo however, maintained that the government was still committed to continuing negotiations with the union.