Staff Reporter
EMPLOYEES of the Mariental Municipality recently staged a protest demanding a salary increase and warned that they would take their concerns to the Office of the Labour Commissioner if their demands are not addressed.
“We are deeply aggrieved by the fact that the government recently announced a pay increment for civil servants, yet we, as local authority employees, were sidelined and excluded from these increases. A 3% raise, in our view, represents a modest and reasonable adjustment,” said Linus Sinvula, Chairperson of the Mariental Branch Executive Committee of the Namibia Local Authority Workers Union (NALAWU).
DEMANDING BETTER PAY: Scenes from the protest. Photos: MICT Hardap Regional Office.
He explained that the increment is intended to provide partial relief from rising living costs, support employee welfare and financial stability, maintain morale and productivity among staff, and promote the retention of experienced and skilled personnel within the Mariental Municipality.
Beyond the pay increase, employees are also requesting that the Office of the Chief Executive (CEO) arrange meetings with councillors to address other administrative issues affecting staff. Sinvula submitted the petition to the municipality’s CEO, Paul Nghiwilepo, while calling for a prompt resolution to their concerns.
“We request that our issues be addressed within the next seven working days. Collectively, we are stating that if the council fails to resolve these grievances within this specified period, we will have no option but to refer the matter to the Office of the Labour Commissioner. Peaceful demonstrations of this nature will then become the order of the day,” he warned.
