The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union (NEHAWU) has announced that it will not consider the 2023‑24 wage agreement that other public‑service unions have signed with the government until a settlement for the 2022‑23 wages is reached. While unions such as the South African Democratic Teachers’ Union (SADTU) and those affiliated with the Federation of Unions of South Africa (FEDUSA) have already concluded a 7.5 % wage increase for 2023‑24 after negotiations that began on 17 February, NEHAWU maintains that it is still negotiating last year’s settlement.
Following more than a week of strike action, NEHAWU and several other unions reached an agreement with the Department of Public Services and Administration on 14 March to end the strike and return to negotiations over the 2022‑23 wages. The agreement applied a “no work, no pay” principle but stipulated that no employee would be disciplined for participating in the strike. In addition to NEHAWU, the deal involved the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU), the Democratic Nursing Organisation of South Africa (DENOSA), and the South African Policing Union (SAPU). None of these unions have signed the 2023‑24 wage deal.
According to NEHAWU spokesperson Lwazi Nkolonzi, the union’s “immediate priority” is to conclude the 2022‑23 wage negotiations before turning its attention to the 2023‑24 issue. “We cannot go on without having resolved the dispute that led us to go on strike,” he said.
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