Some Parents Endorse Teachers' Salary Industrial Action
Some disgruntled parents in Harare have defended school teachers’ ongoing industrial action, saying the strike must spread to other sectors.
Schools reopened amid chaos Monday, with pupils being sent home after finding teachers absent from work.
The situation was the same in most schools on Tuesday and only a few schools were completely shut down while many were opened but without any learning taking place.
Some parents who came to pick their children told NewZimbabwe.com that every worker who is earning the Zimbabwean dollar must go on strike. Said one anonymous parent:
Everyone must join the strike. Not only teachers, all workers who are earning the useless Zimbabwean dollar must go on strike. We are tired of poverty.
Another parent said the ZW$20 000 that teachers are getting was insufficient for their welfare. Added the parent:
We pay rent in foreign currency, school fees, transport, food all on that little amount. Strike ngaiende mberi. We are tired of the rtgs that does not even pay rent.
Teachers’ unions have been calling the broader working class to join their campaign for better salaries and working conditions.
The government has threatened to withhold salaries for teachers who are not reporting for duty. It has also increased the salaries by 20 per cent across the board.
More: NewZimbabwe
