MEDIUM-TERM BUDGET
Wages threaten public services
Provincial health departments are especially vulnerable as their spending on staff has been increasing steadily
The growing public-sector wage bill is eating away at provincial budgets, forcing them to run up huge debts to keep services running, according to Treasury. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the public health sector, which accounted for R13.8bn of the R26.4bn in accruals accumulated by the provinces by the end of the 2016-17 fiscal year. The worst offender was the Gauteng health department, which had accruals of R7bn by March 31, followed by the Eastern Cape (R1.9bn) and KwaZulu-Natal (R1.3bn). "Compensation is driving the overspending in provinces, particularly in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal," said the Treasury’s deputy director-general for intergovernmental relations, Malijeng Ngqaleni. Trade unions and the government are gearing up for a crucial round of wage talks. Unions have tabled a demand for a general salary increase of 10%-12% with the Public Sector Co-ordinating Bargaining Council. The medium-term expenditure framework provides for an overall increase of 7.3% a year. "I...
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