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Pamela Shumba, Senior Reporter
ALL civil servants will be paid their 2019 January salaries by Wednesday next week as part of Governments efforts to cushion them from the adverse effects of the prevailing economic challenges.

Treasury yesterday announced that some civil servants will be paid on Monday while others will receive their salaries on Wednesday.

“Guided by concerns raised by staff associations regarding the adverse impact on their welfare arising from the current economic environment, Treasury hereby proposes to pay the civil servants their January salaries on January 14 and 16, 2019,” said Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Finance and Economic Development Mr George Guvamatanga.

He said members of the Zimbabwe National Army, Air force of Zimbabwe, Zimbabwe Republic Police, Zimbabwe Prisons and Correctional Services as well as those in the health sector will be paid on Monday.

Mr Guvamatanga said the rest of the civil servants, including those in the education sector and pensioners will be paid on Wednesday.

The early pay days for the civil servants come at a time when the Civil Service Commission chairperson Dr Vincent Hungwe has said the National Joint Negotiating Council (NJNC), which brings to the table Government and civil servants’ negotiators, should meet by today.

He said the NJNC will meet to outline the principles that will underpin the allocation of the integrated Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for civil servants that will be distributed across all grades of workers. The meeting will decide the proportion of the COLA to be allocated as basic salary, housing and transport allowances.

President Mnangagwa on Tuesday paid tribute to civil servants’ unions for displaying maturity during a consultative meeting on salaries and conditions of service which the workers held with Government representatives on Monday.

Acting Chief Secretary to the President and Cabinet Mr George Charamba said the Head of State and Government was aware of the difficulties civil servants were going through and the need to adjust their salaries.

— @pamelashumba1