Manzini– About 8,000 civil servants gathered at the SNAT Centre in Manzini on Friday, October 10, for a consultative meeting on the 2025 salary review exercise.
The meeting, organised by the Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT), brought together leaders of public service unions and their members to discuss progress on the ongoing salary review and to seek workers’ input on the next steps in negotiations with government.
SNAT Secretary General Lot Vilakati told the gathering that the consultative meeting was necessary to ensure transparency and unity among workers as the review process continues.
Vilakati urged public servants to consider a go-slow strategy until government approves the proposed salary adjustments. He drew parallels with the 1996 strike led by the late Jan Sithole under the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions, saying the victories from that action continue to benefit workers today.
“Who will help the workers if they remain silent about their challenges?” he asked, calling for active participation in the salary campaign.
Vilakati added that the unions had received various reports from the consultant during different stages of the review, which they later shared with members. He said government negotiators criticised the unions for leaking meeting details, prompting the unions to hold Friday’s consultation to directly engage members and determine a collective way forward.
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