Salary hike for workers eagerly expected on Friday

Written by CHRISTOPHER MAJALIWA

The Deputy Minister for Labour, Employment and Youth Development, Dr Makongoro Mahanga.

TANZANIAN workers join their counterparts globally to celebrate International Workers’ Day amid hopes of pledges by President Jakaya Kikwete to raise salaries and reduce Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE).

Deputy Minister for Labour and Employment Makongoro Mahanga, speaking to the ‘Daily News’ in Dar es Salaam, said there are all indications of salary increment and PAYE reduction.

He attributed his confidence of the increment to the projections for revenue collection and expenditures for the 2015/2016 fiscal year which indicates that total wage bill will go up compared to this year’s budget.

On Wednesday, the Finance Minister, while unveiling the 22.480 trilion/- projections for the coming financial year, pointed out that the total wage bill will stand at 6.4 trilion/- up from 5.3 trilion/- set aside for this year.

“President Kikwete, Treasury and the Public Service Management are the ones responsible for declaring the increment and PAYE reduction. As the ministry responsible for workers’ welfare, we hope that such expectations will be met,” he said.

Dr Mahanga also said that as it has been government’s tradition to increase salaries every financial year, expectations were still high.

On PAYE, the Deputy Minister said that for the past five years, the government has managed to reduce the tax from 18 per cent to 12 per cent.

He noted that the coming year would probably see the rate dropping to at least 11 per cent. He however said that it was difficult to reduce it all of a sudden from the current 12 per cent to single digit as it has been urged by Trade Union Congress of Tanzania (TUCTA).

Dr Mahanga also said that his ministry was doing everything possible to ensure that workers’ welfare is improved. The Deputy Minister noted that the last parliamentary meeting, the National Assembly, passed a bill that will safeguard local experts against foreigners.

The bill is currently waiting to be signed into law by the president, according to Dr Mahanga. Among others, he pointed out that the law will help tighten foreign investors over the number of international experts to be hired.

“The number of foreign experts is not supposed to exceed five, though some foreign investors have been defying this. With this law, the number will be checked.

We introduced the law to protect locals as there is a number of the jobs that could even be done by Tanzanians but were offered to foreigners,” he stressed.

He added that the law will also empower Labour and Employment Ministry to be the only authoritative body responsible for issuing work permits. Currently work permits are issued by Immigration department, the situation which he described as ‘unfair towards protecting local experts’.

Labour Day which is marked every May 1, commonly sees organized street demonstrations and marches by working people and their labour unions throughout most of the world. It is a national holiday in more than 80 countries. It is also celebrated unofficially in many other countries.

The holiday is marked in commemoration of the 1886 Haymarket Massacre in Chicago, when Chicago police fired on workers during a general strike for the eight-hour workday, killing several demonstrators and resulting in the deaths of several police officers, largely from friendly fire. 

Meanwhile, PIUS RUGONZIBWA reports from Mwanza that President Jakaya Kikwete is expected to grace the May Day celebrations whose national level celebrations will be held in the lakeside city.

This will be part of President Kikwete’s last attendance to such celebrations as head of state before retiring later this year. This year’s commemorations are expected to be colourful as all the necessary arrangements are in top gear with few participants finalizing their pavilions at the Kirumba Stadium.

Various companies and institutions are expected to showcase their activities and products. The brief timetable which was released here shows the President, who was expected in Mwanza on Thursday evening, will receive processions mounted by workers as well as grant certificates and prizes to the best workers from various workplaces.

The Head of State will, among other activities, address the workers and the nation at large including responding to the message expected to be presented by the Trade Union Congress of Tanzania (TUCTA).