"The issue is not one of giving in, we are negotiating and we have faith that, by talking and with the principle of empathy, we will reach an agreement", said the national director of Labor, António Estore, quoted by Angop, at the end of a round negotiation between the parties.
The first phase of an interpolated general strike was carried out between the 20th and 22nd of March, due to the lack of consensus between the unions and the Government on the list of demands presented, in September 2023, to the President, João Lourenço.
António Estote stressed that the Ministry has been working daily to avoid a strike, the last resource that workers have to demand their rights.
The official highlighted that negotiations will continue with the country's three union centrals, the União Nacional dos Trabalhadores Angolanos – Confederação Sindical (UNTA-CS), Central Geral dos Sindicatos Independentes e Livres de Angola (CGSSILA) and Força Sindical Angolana (FSA).
This Wednesday's meeting, according to the spokesperson for the unions, Teixeira Cândido, ended without consensus, as there was no news since the last negotiating round, held on March 13th.
The list of demands demanded an increase in the national minimum wage, from the current 32,000 kwanzas to 245,000 kwanzas, a "flexible" proposal, however, to 100,000 kwanzas, a readjustment of the Public Service salary, in the order of 250 percent, and a reduction of 10 percent of Labor Income Tax (IRT).
The executive decided to propose a minimum wage depending on the size of the company, namely 48,000 kwanzas for small companies, 70,000 kwanzas for medium-sized companies and 96,000 kwanzas for large companies, which was rejected by the unions.
The trade unions also demand the updating of the subsidies provided for in the social benefits system of the National Institute of National Security (INSS), as well as the shared management of INSS funds, providing the "necessary transparency".
The second phase of the interpolated general strike is scheduled for the period between 22nd and 30th April, with the third scheduled from 3rd to 14th June this year.
