Eswatini Labour Insight

  WHAT LIES BEHIND THE ESWATINI GOVERNMENT’S NEGOTIATIONS STRATEGY? Written by Fundizwi Sikhondze The Government of eSwatini seems to be engaged in a strategy to sabotage any form of negotiations with the public service trade unions under the banner of the Public Service Associations (PSAs).  In analysing the governments unfolding strategy it seems that the overall strategy is to drive  PSA’s to accept the Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) offer of 3% first before any discussion on other issues at the negotiations table can then be started. Perhaps this way the government sees an escape route from having to deal with the contentious salary review issue   which unfortunately is a key demand for the PSA’s and an issue the PSA's would prefer settled before the negotiations on other issues can commence. Research has unearthed that the government is under severe pressure from global financial institutions, primarily the IMF and the World Bank, not to increase its wage bill. The IMF

  SWADNU ENGAGES IN MASS PROTEST IN MBABANE OVER PERSONNEL AND MEDICINE SHORTAGES IN HEALTH FACILITIES AROUND THE COUNTRY Picture: SWADNU President Welcome Mdluli standing with NAPSAWU President Oscar Nkambule at the petition delivery  on Friday ,03 June 2022 in Mbabane (Picture credit: SWADNU Facebook page) Written by Fundizwi Sikhondze  The Swaziland Democratic Nurses Union (SWADNU) delivered a petition in at the Cabinet and Ministry of Health (MOH) offices in Mbabane on Friday 03 June 2021. The issues giving rise to the petition are the non-availability of nurses, the chronic lack of medicine in health care facilities around the country, the lack of security in health care facilities as well as the public’s right to quality public healthcare. The petitions came after several months of their engaging the government and deriving no results from those engagements. For instance on Tuesday 26 th April 2022 the leadership of the SWADNU, led by President Welcome Mdluli and Secretary