By NAKUBIANA MUMBUNA –
THE Zambia National Union of Teachers (ZNUT) has commended LICEF for striving to improve the conditions of service for teachers at the institution.
ZNUT general secretary Newman Bubala said improved salaries and conditions of service would help motivate the teachers.
Mr Bubala said this during the signing ceremony of the collective agreement between LICEF and the union.
“In the past years LICEF has been consistently awarding new salaries and conditions of service through the process of collective bargaining,“ he said.
Mr Bubala urged LICEF to continue investing in the professional development of teachers in order to sustain quality education.
He appealed to the teachers to work hard and not engage in vices that would lower the standards of the school.
Chairperson of the joint negotiating team Haroon Ghumra said the collective agreement covered the one-year period from January to December 2015.
“Although the agreement is being signed today the upward adjustment in the teacher’s salaries will be backdated to January 2015,” Mr Ghumra said.
The 2015 collective agreement was concluded in a spirit of give and take. “Despite the serious economic challenges that every institution is facing, LICEF management found it necessary to improve the staff
conditions of service to motivate the teachers,” he said.
Mr Ghumra implored the teachers to be committed, dedicated and hard working. The salary structure at LICEF is a three-tier system made up of the basic pay increased by 10 per cent, housing which has been increased by 10 per cent and miscellaneous which has been increased by five per cent.