It is timely that this week’s Society page topic happened to be pre-empted by the recent salary increment for civil servants. The move has been applauded by all concerned although not without some hesitancy. Fears are rife of another spike in commodity prices and cost of living, this time because there is supposedly more money in circulation…

Tesfu Telahoun

Regulate the raise

One of the advantages of life in Ethiopia is the low cost of living. The nation, overwhelmingly agricultural, has historically lived a substinence existence which imposed few material exchanges. Monetary exchange is hardly practiced except to obtain extraordinary items such as one off purchases of metal roofing by the village’s richest farmer. In short, Ethiopians have entered the wage economy rather late in the day as it was only since the 1920s that a salaried middle class was introduced.
The reduced importance of coined currency in the largely barter pre 1920s economy, ironically, inflated the value of money once it was acquired. This and other socio-economic realities contributed to a uniformly low civil servant pay scale system which has kept the Ethiopian employee among the worst paid in Africa in virtually any field of endeavor.
Some would say that the inputs behind demands by sections of society, including political parties for across the board salary increments is the rampaging inflation that has us at our wits end. Those who link the need for a national salary increment based on current events are correct to believe as they do but they are missing the bigger picture.
Regular (annual) salary raises are a custom of modern business. All civil servants and employees in the private sector are entitled by contract or even labor law. Performance based increments are an added benefit for outstanding employees. Then there is the third kind of salary increment which fluctuates periodically, even monthly (God forbid), in accordance with the prevailing purchasing power of the currency.
The salary increment for civil servant is a welcome measure but one that is a mixed blessing. What, for example, has been prepared for the thousands and thousands of private and public sector employees not covered by the increment? Is the government going to compel employers to raise pay scales? By far the most alarming risk is that unscrupulous business persons will take advantage as they had done on so many occasions.
The possible negative impact of the salary increments should be examined in detail in order not to cause more harm to family budgets. This being the time when schools re-open, households are pressed for money already. The authorities should diligently monitor price fixing, hoarding and other arbitrary economic fraud on a regular basis. Stiff sentences on a few repeat offenders (traders) would do the trick.

What is your view on across the board
salary increments?

I simply don’t understand what is so controversial or complex about whether salaries should be raised or not. Of course they should! Where does government expect us to bring the money from each time businesses raise their prices? I, for one, am going nuts trying to raise two children in a house that is not a home on, 750 measly birr each long month.
Haile, Carpenter

I am for across the board salary increments but it must be done with the utmost care. Otherwise there is the risk of fueling crippling, three even four digit inflation. My worry is this: will landlords, the government (utilities especially) and trades people immediately quadruple prices because people would be earning “more” once salaries are increased?

Yared, Unemployed

Forget about raising salaries because that is a lame solution that will cause a complete economic free-fall. It’s better to concentrate on how the dying Ethiopian birr can regain some of its fast eroding purchasing power.

Dagnatchew, Instructor

What is all this talk of across the board salary increments? We are in this mess because our government is broke. This is the hard fact. The state has overextended itself in multiple, grandiose projects, foreign military adventures and wasteful millennium celebrations. There is no money even if the government really wants to raise incomes.

B.Y, Journalist

I would have been much more happier, had there been a government move to curb the astounding prices of goods these days. Regardless of all the good things they say about free market economic policy, I think it really sucks. Creating the impression in the market that consumers have got more money to spend, I think, would definitely worsen present condition.
Dereje, Civil servant