According to the secretary-general of the National Teachers' Union (Sinprof), Admar Jinguma, the meeting that began on Tuesday afternoon continued into the night, but without any consensus being reached between the parties.
In May 2024, the Government and three trade unions, namely the National Union of Angolan Workers – Trade Union Confederation (UNTA-CS), the General Central of Independent and Free Trade Unions of Angola (CGSILA) and the Força Sindical – Trade Union Central (FS-CS) reached an agreement after several phases of a general strike in the public sector, with one of the points agreed being a 25 percent salary increase for public employees starting in January of this year, which has since been postponed until next March.
Admar Jinguma, one of the leaders of CGSILA, said that "each one maintained their positions", noting that the trade unions defend "strict compliance with the agreement".
"Because the government asked us for a lot of time at the time and that time was granted, so this whole narrative doesn't make sense now. For us, the government has to comply with what is in the agreement," he said.
According to Admar Jinguma, at the meeting the government defended its position with a view to implementing the salary increase from March with retroactive payments.
"The government says it is in a position to pay in March with retroactive payments, that is not our position, it is only the government's position," added the secretary general of Sinprof, adding that the executive again alleged legal issues at the meeting, legislative authorization, "which makes no sense at all, because the government had a lot of time to do its homework".
Last Friday, the Angolan Secretary of State for Labor and Social Security, Pedro Filipe, announced that the 25 percent salary increase for public servants, scheduled for this month, should happen in the first quarter of the year, depending on the approval of the legislative package for this purpose by the National Assembly.
"In addition to the issue of salary adjustment, we have to combine it with the IRT (Employment Income Tax) rules. As you well know, we have several tax brackets in the IRT code. We have certain brackets where exemption has been assumed, but with the simple increase we will have to make an amendment to the Presidential Legislative Decree, which basically establishes the brackets and approves the salary scales, to prevent us from committing injustices", he explained.
The agreement provided for the update of public sector salaries by 25 percent, from 2025 to 2027, with an evaluation of the format for subsequent years.
