Health workers win juicy deal
Ministry of Health and its workers have agreed on a 15 percent pay hike like the rest of the civil service, but the deal includes dramatic jumps in allowances, The Nation has learnt.
The allowances, namely locum rates, risk or medical, government top-up and professional have gone up by thousands of percentages and, if approved,will be backdated to November 1 2023.
The package is product of mediation talks between the Ministry of Health and health practitioners affiliated to the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives in Malawi (Nonm) and Physician Assistants of Malawi Union of Malawi (Paum).
The Malawi Human Rights Commission (MHRC) brokered the conciliation settlement agreement dated February 13 2024 that we have seen and which Secretary for Health Samson Mndolo will have to submit to Treasury.
The agreement follows a month long mediation process that started on January 11 2024 with MHRC executive secretary Habiba Osman as lead conciliator.
The document—signed by Mndolo, Osman, Nonm president Shouts Simeza and Paum president Solomon Chomba—indicates that the proposed monthly professional allowance has jumped to K30 000 from K1 800 for juniors and K2 800 for seniors.
For the government top-up allowance, junior health workers at Grade M could get K70 000 from K20 000 while the highest at Grade C might walk away with K710 400.
On the risk or medical allowance, grades M to I receive K150 000 from K50 000 with the highest, Grade C, getting the lowest risk allowance of K60 000.
Between grades G and M, workers at central hospitals could start receiving locum rates of K40 000 for day service and K60 000 for night service.
On the other hand, workers at district hospitals may rake in K30 000 for day service and K50 000 for night work.
Minus the locum rates, this means an assistant medical officer at Grade L could pocket K250 000 monthly in risk, government top up and professional allowances.
Apart from engaging Treasury to have the proposed allowances approved, the agreement’s terms stipulate that Mndolo will also engage the Department of Human Resource Management and Development on health workers’ annual pay increments.
It further shows that government has pledged to conduct promotional interviews for eligible health workers by the end of July 2024 and that by August 13 2024, Capital Hill will have deployed additional health workers to central hospitals and district councils.
The agreement reads in part: “Secretary for Health commits to engage the Secretary to Local Government to ensure that staff deployed to district councils trickle down to health centres.”
Speaking in an interview yesterday, Chomba said they are happy and comfortable with the conciliatory resolution proposals as they respond well to what they petitioned their employer for.
“Our main role now is to monitor the implementation and responsibility of each party for the benefit of our membership and the nation at large,” he said.
Chomba commended the cordial relationship they had with all stakeholders, including the mediator who he said demonstrated outstanding expertise in the conciliation process.
On the justification for the hefty allowances, Mndolo said he would revert with a response, but he had not done so by press time.
Malawi Health Equity Network executive director George Jobe described the new perks as a welcome development, saying members of the public are the ultimate winner.
“This means patients will be able to get the best treatment in public hospitals without disruptions. The pay and allowance increment is a huge motivation to health workers and we expect the best from them,” he said.
However, Jobe pointed out that apart from promotions based on interviews, the Ministry of Health should also devise a system for recognising hard-working and competent workers even with lower qualifications.
Last month, government raised civil servants’ salaries by 15 percent but Paum and Nonm rejected the offer, demanding a 20 to 44 percent increment range.
