Maputo — The Mozambican government is suspending all new admissions of staff to the public administration, as from this month, because of the pressure on the public accounts supposedly caused by implementation of the new Single Wage Table (TSU), reports Wednesday's issue of the independent newssheet "Carta de Mocambique'.
This measure is envisaged in the Medium Term Fiscal Scenario (CFMP), approved by the government in June, which states "Faced with the pressure of wages on the State Budget, and the need for fiscal adjustment to being this budget line to sustainable levels, the Government will suspend new admissions in all sectors in the second half of 2023'.
In the period 2024-2026, it adds, "exceptionally new hiring will be allowed of about 3,200 staff a year. For the newly contracted staff, an annual budget of 700 million meticais (about 11 million US dollars, at the current exchange rate) will be allocated, which on average represents about 0.06 per cent of the Gross Domestic Product per year'.
The CFMP guarantees that "minimum levels of hiring' will be maintained in the priority sectors, in order to ensure improvements in the provision of public services.
The government is adopting additional measures, including auditing wages sheets, auditing the inclusion of staff in the TSU, and the obligatory retirement of about 25,200 staff who are past retirement age.
Implementing the TSU has proved much more expensive than the government had forecast. The annual impact of the wage reform should have been 19.2 billion meticais a year, but the real cost has proved to be 28.4 billion meticais.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
The measures taken by the government are intended to bring the costs of the TSU down to 20 billion meticais a year.
The problems with the TSU have also hit Mozambican teachers by delaying payment of the overtime pay owing to them since October 2022. This delay led angry teachers to stop giving night classes during the first quarter of 2023.
Education Minister Carmelita Namashalua told reporters on Tuesday that the overtime will only be paid after the inclusion of teachers' wages in the TSU has been corrected, but she had no idea how long that would take.
"The overtime must be paid', she said. "What we are doing is working with the Ministry of Economy and Finance. The Ministry of Economy and Finance knows about this matter, and is managing the problem'.
"Right now the justification we have is that the window for paying overtime is closed, while work is done to clarify all questions concerning the management of the TSU', Namashalua added. "After these questions have been clarified, the window will be re-opened'.
"I can't say whether it's a financial difficulty', said the Minister. "Only the Ministry of Economy and Finance can explain whether the difficulty is financial or not. What they have told us is that there are placements within the TSU that must be adjusted, and after this situation is solved, the overtime will be paid'.
Namashalua added that the Ministry's National Directorate of Human Resources "has told our colleagues to remain calm, and to do their jobs, teaching our children, and one day this overtime will be paid'.
